


Head Over Heels

by kulina



Category: Jonas Brothers
Genre: Curtain Fic, Established Relationship, Multi, No One Questions the Incest, POV Second Person, Threesome - F/M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-01
Updated: 2017-04-06
Packaged: 2018-08-18 19:59:10
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 30
Words: 41,070
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8174149
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kulina/pseuds/kulina
Summary: In which Nick and Joe are seeking a live-in house manager, and they choose you.





	1. Called You For the First Time Yesterday

You’re not really sure what to expect when you apply to the job listing online. _House manager_ , the post says. _Live-in or live-out. Salary negotiable._

You click the ad and read. 

 _Household manager/personal assistant needed in Dallas, TX. Male or female (no preference) over the age of 21._   
_There are no children, just two husbands that need help with cooking, organizing, de-cluttering, light office work, and occasional transportation. Compensated travel with the couple optional._  
_The family has a golden retriever that lives in the home, but again, no children._  
_Bedroom and bathroom available in a private wing of the large home. A car will be provided._  
_45 hours per week, but times are flexible. You may have the opportunity to take a few college classes or explore the area. You will have two consecutive days off per week.  
_ _If interested, please email…_

You shoot off a quick, concise email with the requested headshot and apply to two more jobs before sighing and pushing away from your desk.

You come back to your laptop a few hours later and are surprised to see a reply already from the agency with the household manager position.

 _We’d love to meet with you. Are you available tomorrow morning at 10?_  

You smile and write back a quick reply. Even if you weren’t free, you would have made yourself available. You’re dying to get out of this cramped apartment and into a chill, quiet job that you actually like. 

Fingers crossed.

 

* * *

 

You dab one last bit of color on your lips and check your mascara one more time before you head into the (huge, gorgeous) house. The community is gated, and it’s just one mansion after another, all with lush, green yards and beautiful stone exteriors. This particular house has a waterfall out front. Yes, a fucking _waterfall._  

God, the second email said that the family was high-profile, but this? This is a multi-million dollar house. Who are these people? You're half expecting to walk in and see Neil Patrick Harris. 

Well, when the front door opens, you don’t see NPH, but you do see two handsome and well-dressed men. They welcome you warmly and usher you inside. One offers you a glass of water while the other pulls out your chair. You decline the water but thank them both.

They talk with you for a moment about the position and then ask you about yourself. You’re humble but warm. You explain a bit about college not being the right fit for you and following your own path. All that bullshit you have to say to make yourself feel better for leaving school. _You don’t miss it_ , you remind yourself. 

They nod and seem pleased with the answer.

You talk a little more about your love of reading and art, and they mention that the men of the house are musicians. 

Your eyebrows crease before you can stop them.

“We’re not the ones you’ll be working for,” one of them explains. “I’m so sorry; we should have been clearer. We’re from the agency.” 

“Oh!”

“But the men are musicians, yes. One of them is also a florist.” 

“That’s great,” you say, and you mean it. It sounds sweet.

After a moment more of chatting, the man who offered you the glass of water stands with two fingers pressed to his ear and excuses himself. He comes back a moment later and opens his messenger bag to a sleek silver folder. “Now,” he says, “before we tell you who you’ll be working for – that is, if you accept the position – we need you to sign this. It’s a non-disclosure agreement, which means that everything about where you work, who you work for, phone numbers, addresses, license plate numbers, all of that – it’s all confidential.”

You nod, nervous but mostly excited.

“Based on what we saw of your social media use, you _will_ recognize these gentlemen, but we ask that you go about things as normally as possible. They are friendly, but please remember that you’re a professional.”

You nod again. “Of course.”

“Alright.”

You sign the papers, and the man who got up before gets to his feet again. He disappears into the other room and walks back in with none other than Nick and Joe Jonas.

You somehow keep your mouth from dropping open, but you feel like your eyes are going to bug out of your head. Your stomach is turning. All this time, you’ve been in the Jonas house? And wait – didn’t that ad online say _husbands_?

“Hi,” Joe says warmly, extending his hand. “I’m Joe.”

You shake it. “I’m (Y/N),” you smile. “It’s nice to meet you.”

“You, too.”

“Nick Jonas,” Nick says, shaking your hand as well.

“Nice to meet you,” you repeat. 

Nick motions for you to sit back down, so you do. He and Joe fill the chairs the two men just vacated. The men move into a side room, but they don’t leave. You wonder if they’re watching you on a monitor or something. 

“So, you like to read,” Joe says.

“Yes. You heard that?” 

He shrugs. “I was eavesdropping,” he admits with a sly wink. “Anyway, Nick likes to read. We have a whole library a couple rooms over.” 

“You’re welcome to borrow whatever you like,” Nick says softly. 

“Thank you.” 

“So, have you done this kind of thing before?” Joe inquires.

“Well, not professionally,” you confess, “but I was always taking care of my house when I lived with my parents. I had a lot of brothers and sisters, and since I was the oldest, I was kind of automatically designated as the helper.”

They nod, understanding. 

“But I like it,” you say quickly. “Cleaning and stuff. I love cooking and doing dishes and all that. It’s kind of relaxing.”

“You’re welcome to do all the dishes you want,” Joe encourages. 

“I will,” you promise with a light giggle.

“So, do you have any questions for us? I know this is probably kind of a surprise.”

Usually, you’d say no out of courtesy, but this had been a fucking weird morning. “Um, yeah, actually. Those guys,” you say, pointing back in the other room, “said one of you is a florist?” 

Nick raises a hand. “That’s me.” 

“Really?”

“You know Enjay’s?” Joe asks. 

Nick looks down at his lap, a pink blush creeping up his cheeks.

“The flower shop on Main Street?” you ask. 

“That’s mine,” Nick murmurs. 

“ _Enjay’s,”_ Joe intones. “Get it? En… jay…”

You smile. Nick’s initials. Of course. “Do you work there?”

“Sometimes. But only in the back. I like to make arrangements."

"His staff don’t even know who owns the place. He goes in every month or so and makes bouquets in the middle of the night. They think there’s a ghost,” Joe says, waggling his eyebrows excitedly. 

“No, they don’t,” Nick replies quietly, but it’s affectionate. He looks at you. “I don’t really know what they think, actually.” 

“A ghost,” Joe stage whispers.

Nick bats at his forearm, and you laugh.

“Any other questions?” Joe prompts. 

“One more for now.”

“We don’t have any ghosts here,” Joe says, thinking he’s answering your question. Then he dramatically adds, “That we know of.”

He’s just as silly as you would have imagined. “It’s not that,” you assure. “Just, um. Don’t you both tour?”

“I’m done for at least a year,” Nick answers, but he sounds almost wistful.

“And I’m on and off,” Joe chimes in. “Mostly I should be here, though. We’ll have press in mid-November with the album coming, but that’s all. A lot of that will be Skyping people and making phone calls and stuff, and it should be done in three or four weeks. The band comes over from time to time, so there will be more food involved on those days, but honestly, we usually just drink beer and order pizzas.”

“Well, I don’t mind cooking for a lot of people,” you note. “I like baking and that kind of thing, too, so if-” 

“Can you make angel food cake?” Joe interrupts excitedly. “Ooh, and cinnamon rolls?”

“Cinnamon rolls yes,” you reply. “And I’m sure I can find a good angel food cake recipe." 

“Sweet!” he exclaims. “I like her.” 

Nick gives Joe a small smile, and Joe grins back.

God, they’re fucking cute. You can’t even find it in you to be weirded out because they’re _so_ fucking cute.

Joe breaks away from his gaze at Nick and asks what you make for breakfast. 

“Whatever you want,” you answer. “Just let me know, and I’ll have it done. I can do crepes, waffles, pancakes…” 

“Cinnamon toast?” he asks hopefully. 

You laugh at his simple request. “Yes, I can make cinnamon toast.” 

“Can it be breakfast already?” he whines at Nick, who ruffles his hair affectionately. “Hey, do you want to see your room?” Joe asks excitedly.

“Oh, I’d love to.”

You follow the boys out of the kitchen where you’ve been sitting, through a large sitting room with a massive television and an L-shaped couch, and up a flight of stairs. At the top, there’s a fork; Nick points down the right side. “Our room is down there,” he says. “My-” 

But just then, a dog comes bounding down the hall. He’s big and slobbery with white hairs around his eyes and nose from age. He runs right up to you, tail wagging rapidly.

“Elvis, right?” you inquire, crouching down to let the dog get your scent. 

“That’s the one. He has separation anxiety from Nick, I swear,” Joe says, shaking his head.

“So do you,” Nick shoots back. 

Joe leans up to kiss his cheek. 

“Elvis, sit,” Nick commands, and the dog obeys.

You stand up.

“Stay. Anyway – our room is that way and my dog usually hangs out down there, too. He pretty much has free reign right now, but if you don’t want him in your space or anything, just tell him. He won’t mind."

“No, I like him,” you say, smiling at him. You want to pet him more, but Nick clearly doesn’t want Elvis interfering at the moment.

“He sheds a lot,” Joe warns. 

“That’s okay.” 

Nick leads you down the other hallway, and Joe trails behind. He passes a closed door and then opens the one at the end of the hall. “This is yours,” he says. 

Your eyes widen; the room is _huge_ , definitely bigger than anything you were expecting. There’s a queen sized bed with a down comforter, several pillows, and a fleece blanket. You also have an oversized desk of your own, a flat screen TV, a refrigerator, and a walk-in closet.

“Wow,” you exhale.

Nick points at the door that isn’t the closet. “There’s a bathroom in there; it has a waterfall shower. If you have any trouble figuring it out, just let me know. Um, down here,” he says, crossing the room, "there’s a door that leads to the garage. You can come and go as you please. We’ll get you a key and a garage door opener.”

“This is incredible,” you say, looking around the room again. “Thank you so much. It’s beautiful.” 

“Well, we’re excited to have you,” Nick says with a soft smile. “We really need help.” 

“Yeah. I don’t think I could take one more day of our terrible cooking,” Joe adds. 

Nick nods in agreement. Then he says, “Feel free to bring over whatever you want. We’ll help you unload.” 

“When should I come back?” you ask. 

“Whenever you want.” 

“Tonight!” Joe crows. “We can try to make you dinner.” 

“Joe, why don’t we give her some time to pack?” 

Joe pouts. “But I want my cinnamon toast for breakfast.” 

You exhale a laugh. “I don’t have that much stuff, honestly,” you tell them. “I’m sure I could be done packing by tonight. Or tomorrow morning at the very latest.” 

“Well, why don’t you bring what you can and then come for dinner?” Nick suggests.

“You guys are so sweet. Are you sure?”

“Yes,” they both answer together.

“Alright! I’ll see you tonight then.”

They walk you down your stairs (your stairs!) to the garage. They open the door for you and bid you goodbye. As you’re walking to your car, you can just barely hear Joe whisper to Nick, “I really like her. She’s so nice.”

You smile and get into your car, careful to keep your music turned all the way down until you’re out of the neighborhood. Then you can’t help the squeal you let out. You’re moving in with _Nick and Joe Jonas._


	2. Finally Found

Dinner turns out to be spaghetti from a box. Nick boils it so long that it’s a little gummy, but you don't mind because for the first time in a long time, you’re having actual conversations and laughing. It doesn’t feel too much like you’re having dinner with your employers. It feels more like you and the Jonas boys have been friends all your life. 

Joe spills marinara sauce on his white t-shirt, and Nick tells him to immediately throw it in the washer. Joe does. He peels his shirt off right there at the table and motions for you to follow him a few rooms over so you can see where the laundry room is. Or at least, that’s the reason he gives you. You figure out on your own that he doesn’t really know how to operate the fancy washing machine that came with the house. 

“Our maids used to do the laundry,” Joe admits as he opens the front and tosses his shirt inside. 

You lean down to pull it right back out and pour some stain remover on it.

“Oh,” Joe says, like the action seems familiar. 

“Where are the maids now?” you inquire as you quickly scan the digital display, trying to figure out how to get the washer to turn on. 

Joe shakes his head. “It was too many people in the house. They were all so uptight, and they kept moving things around, you know? And they cleaned all the time – _all_ the time – so it felt more like living in a hotel or a hospital or something than a home.” He looks at you with wide eyes. “Please don’t clean all the time.”

You can’t help but laugh. “Alright, I’ll try not to.”

"The house always smelled like lemons." He wrinkles his nose. "I don't like lemons."

You manage to press the right buttons and get the washer started, and Joe dumps about a quarter gallon of liquid detergent into the machine before you can grab the container out of his hand. “Not like that!” you squeal. 

“Oops.” 

“Joe Jonas,” you sigh, shaking your head. “If we all drown in bubbles tonight, it’s going to be your fault.”

“It’ll be an adventure,” Joe assures, and then he’s heading back for the table, leaving you to close the machine and pray that it doesn’t break. 

You wash your hands at the kitchen sink and then take your place back at the table just in time to hear Joe telling Nick that all three of you are going to drown in your sleep. 

“That’s _not_ what I said.”

“Oh yeah?” Nick teases. “What did you say?” 

“I said _if_ we drown, then it’s going to be his fault.”

Nick looks at Joe. “She’s right, you know.” 

Joe just shrugs and goes back to his spaghetti.

“It should be fine,” you say, unable to keep a tiny smile off your face. “He just got a little detergent-happy.” 

Nick shakes his head. “Sounds pretty normal.”

The boys clear their plates from the table a little while later and you do the dishes while they get the last of the duffle bags from your trunk. You were right; it was easy to pack up everything before dinner.

Elvis comes to stand by your knee while you load the dishwasher, and you greet him warmly. He looks up at you like he’s smiling.

Nick and Joe come back a few minutes later, and Joe announces that everything is in your room waiting for you. 

“Thank you,” you say sincerely. “You two are so nice. You really didn’t have to do that.”

“It’s no problem,” Joe assures. “We were talking about watching Pulp Fiction. You wanna join?”

“Oh, no, that’s alright,” you decline. You don’t want to overstep. You already agreed to dinner _and_ letting them carry all your things up a flight of stairs. 

“You sure?” Nick asks.

“It’s a classic,” Joe adds. “Uma Thurman, John Travolta, drugs, gangsters…”

“I’m kind of tired, but thank you so much,” you tell them honestly. You give Elvis a pat on the head and start for the staircase.

“Alright. Sleep well,” Nick tells you. 

You’re glad you’ve already turned away, because you can’t help the blush on your cheeks. “Goodnight,” you respond. You’re halfway up the stairs before you realize you have a few more questions for them.

The TV clicks on and the roar of that night's football game fills the room. Nick must have said something funny, because Joe lets out a burst of laughter. You knock gently on the banister. Both Jonases turn.

“Change your mind?” Joe asks hopefully.

“Oh, no, um. I had a question.”

“What’s up?”

“What time did you want your cinnamon toast?” you ask Joe. 

“Oh, I don’t know.” 

“He sleeps late,” Nick supplies. “Like ten.” 

“Oh, alright. I’ll be up long before then. Just let me know when you’re hungry, okay?” You look to Nick. “Same to you. And do you want me to like, clock in somewhere or write my hours down?”

“Yeah, you can track it however you want,” he nods.

“Okay. What time are you usually up?” 

“It varies. Don’t worry about it.”

You nod, not really sure what to do with the lack of information. You figure you’ll set an alarm for 6:30 just to be safe. “Alright. Goodnight, guys.”

“Goodnight,” they chorus.

You head up the stairs and down the left hallway to your bathroom. As you brush your teeth, you stare at the shower that Nick had mentioned. Yeah, you’ll definitely need his help with it. The controls aren’t handles; it’s a digital screen against the wall. You decide to go mess with it, and you can’t even get it to turn on. You give up and head back to the sink.

You spit, rinse, and stare at yourself in the mirror. You’re working for the Jonas Brothers. You’re about to fall asleep in their mansion. They’re nice to you, and they seem to genuinely like you. How did this happen? If someone had told you a week ago – if someone had told you _yesterday_ – you would have shaken your head and told them to stop teasing. But here you are. And here the boys are. 

You slip on a camisole and a pair of pajama shorts and climb into the bed. It’s so soft that it reminds you of a cloud. Of course even their guest bedroom is beyond comfortable. You never want to get up.

You stare at your phone, wishing you could update some sort of social media and tell everyone what’s happening. But one, you signed a non-disclosure agreement, and two, something about it doesn’t seem right anyway. They’ve been so welcoming. You wouldn’t want to reduce them to a status update. They’re real people, and they’ve been nothing but kind.

You scroll through Facebook until you get bored, and then you set your alarm. 6:30 seems so early, but it’s barely 10 at the moment. You’ll have plenty of time to sleep. It’s not like you ever needed much anyway. 

You set your phone on the bedside table and snuggle into the pillows. You can’t wait to see what tomorrow brings.


	3. The Missing Part

Morning comes quickly.

You wake up two minutes before your alarm blares, and you stay cocooned under the blankets until it does. You’re just starting to yawn when the opening notes of DNCE’s Pay My Rent sound. You chuckle to yourself, reaching quickly for the phone to shut it off. Better change the song before one of them hears it some morning. 

You stretch and push the covers off, swing your feet over the bed, and stand on the plushy carpet. The covers are easy to make up again – it only takes you a moment. You situate the decorative pillows on top and then dress yourself in a blue V-neck and a pair of comfortable jeans. You run a brush through your hair for just a moment and apply a dash of eyeliner. Then you head downstairs to start your morning. 

There’s no physical list of chores, which makes things a little difficult. Your mom used to leave a list of "things that would help,” but it turned into a to-do list anyway. You’re a bit of a perfectionist after all. 

You’ve just assigned yourself a task and begun it when Nick comes tiptoeing down the stairs, acoustic guitar in hand. You glance at the clock on the microwave; 6:44 AM. 

“Hey,” you smile. 

“Hi,” he responds shyly. “I didn’t wake you, did I?” 

“Oh, no, you didn’t. I was about to ask you the same question.” 

He shakes his head and takes a seat where the sides of the couch intersect. “I’ve been up for an hour.” 

“Are you hungry?” you ask. 

“No, not yet. Thanks, though.”

“Okay. Just let me know.” You turn back to the pantry you’ve just started to unload.

“What are you doing?” he asks, but he’s not judging. Just curious. 

“Re-organizing,” you explain, peeking your head out from around the door.

Nick nods. “That sounds great. We need a system in there. We’ve just been kind of shoving stuff wherever it fits.” 

You shake your head. Those boys… 

“Was there anything specific you wanted me to start with?” you inquire.

He shakes his head again. “No, I don’t think so. Whatever you want is fine.”

“Alright.”

He starts to pick some notes on his guitar, and you can’t help the smile that forms on your face. He sings softly to himself – not words, just a sort of improvised melody. It’s a wonderful soundtrack as you work. 

Once everything is on the counter, you stop to look at the structure of the shelves and think how you would organize the pantry if it were yours. You have to think of it that way anyway, you realize; you’ll definitely be the one in and out of it the most.

You’ve gotten so focused on what you’re going to put where that fifteen minutes later, Nick startles you when he calls your name. Luckily, you’re still behind the pantry door, so he doesn't see it when you jump. 

“What’s up?” you ask, stepping out from behind the door. 

“Can I run something by you?”

“Sure.” 

“Thanks. Could you come over here?” He holds up a legal pad for you to take. 

You slide the last box of cereal onto the top shelf and head towards him. You take the notepad from his hand and look at it as you walk around the couch and take a seat a few feet away from him. 

“Can you read my handwriting?” he asks when you’ve been quiet for a while.

“Yeah. Are these lyrics?”

“Yeah. I think so.”

“It’s really… wow. It’s really good.” 

“It’s short, but I don’t think I want to add anything else,” he murmurs. 

You nod. “I understand. It feels complete.” 

“I think so, too.” He gives you a small, shy smile. “Thanks.” 

You smile back. “No problem.” As you walk back to the kitchen, you ask over your shoulder, “Do you want something to eat while you think?”

“Sure.”

“What are you hungry for?”

He fumbles before he answers. “Hang on.”

You peer over at him in an effort to see over his shoulder to what he’s doing, but it’s to no avail. 

A moment later, he says, “I need carbs.” He taps his pen against his knee. “Do we have blueberries?”

You open the fridge and sort through it for a moment. (You know what your next project will be.) “Yes.”

“Can you do blueberry pancakes?”

“Of course,” you reply warmly. 

“Thanks.”

After being in charge of breakfast for so many kids on so many mornings, you have your mom’s pancake recipe memorized. You whip it up easily, and in twenty minutes, you call Nick to the table. His eyes widen at the sight of three large blueberry pancakes.

You place whipped cream, butter, and syrup on the table near his orange juice and say, “I don’t know what you like with them.”

He reaches for the butter. “This looks amazing. Like something at a fancy restaurant.”

You come back over with one pancake of your own. “Thanks. It’s a family recipe.”

He takes a bite and his eyes shut. “Oh my god,” he says, covering his full mouth with his left hand. 

You giggle. “Good?” 

“ _Yes.”_

You make small talk at the table about the area and what there is to do and where the boys like to eat. 

“We don’t really grocery shop ourselves,” Nick says when he’s starting on the third pancake. “That’s why I asked about the blueberries. I never know what we have.”

“You know, you could make a list of stuff you always want in the house. That way you know it’ll always be there.” You swallow a sip of orange juice and say, “I could always shop for you if that would be easier.”

Nick raises his eyebrows. “You could,” he repeats. 

“Yeah! I totally could. That way you wouldn’t have to pay two people. And it’s not like I’m not going to have time. Joe asked me not to clean.”

Nick snorts a laugh. “Did he tell you about the citrus smell?”

“He did.” 

“He hated it,” Nick recalls fondly, rolling his eyes. “To be honest, I stopped noticing it after a while, but it was all he could talk about. And whenever we got out of the house, he would practically write poems about how ‘natural’ the air smelled. But then as soon as we got home, he’d start complaining about having a headache from the lemon again.”

You shake your head at the image.

“But yeah. I don’t really like the guy that does our shopping. I'd love to fire him, frankly, so if you're really offering to take over…”

“Well, it’s technically part of the job description anyway. I mean, not the one the agency put online, but I think in the grand scheme of things, grocery shopping counts as house managing.” 

He nodded thoughtfully. “Alright. I’ll talk to Joe.”

You chat a little more, and after a few minutes, he goes back to his guitar, and you take the dishes to the sink. You spray some hot water on them and load them into the dishwasher, and then you open drawer after drawer until you can find the plastic wrap. When you eventually locate it, you lay some over the rest of the batter, sliding it carefully into the fridge. Yeah, you’ll definitely be organizing that next. How did the maids find anything? 

You clean the rest of the mess from breakfast and then go back to the pantry. When you’re satisfied thirty minutes later, you start taking things out of the fridge shelf by shelf and 409-ing the glass inside it.

“How long have you lived here?” you ask Nick. 

He keeps picking at his guitar and answers, “Um. I guess it’s been like, six months now. Almost seven.”

Based on the appearance of the refrigerator, you had been expecting him to say _years._ “Wow. You should have fired those maids a long time ago,” you joke, “because this fridge is a disaster.”

“Sorry.”

You shake your head. “I’m teasing. Anyway, that’s what I’m here for, right?” 

A little while later, Joe stumbles down the stairs with bleary eyes. 

“Hey, sleepyhead,” Nick greets, standing up and going to kiss him.

“Warm,” Joe mumbles into Nick’s shoulder. 

“Did you just come down here to sleep on me some more?” Nick inquires. 

“Uh-huh,” Joe nods. 

Nick takes his hand and leads him to the couch, where he lies back and flips on the TV while Joe gets comfortable on his chest.

“One more hour,” Joe murmurs. 

“Yeah, okay, baby.” Nick tugs the throw blanket over them and kisses the top of Joe’s hair. “Go back to sleep.” 

Nick settles on some lawyer show you don’t recognize and runs his fingers over Joe’s hair while he absently looks at the screen. 

Joe’s already breathing evenly when you put everything back in the fridge and head toward the stairs. “I’m gonna do your room now,” you whisper. 

Nick nods, careful not to jostle his brother. Er, husband. 

You glance back at them when you’ve reached the landing. They look so sweet. You head down the boys’ hall and find Elvis sleeping in the center of their bed. You decide to work around him and only wake him up when you have to.

Maybe you’ll set your alarm for a little later tomorrow.


	4. Of Me

“I wrote a song about you this morning,” Nick smiles at Joe while he’s crunching on his cinnamon toast. 

“You did?” 

“Yeah.”

“What’s it about?” 

Nick runs a hand over the back of his own neck. “How I miss you when you’re on tour.” 

You smile as you listen to them talk.

“Aww,” Joe grins. He leans forward with sugary lips to kiss Nick’s cheek.

Nick doesn’t brush the cinnamon off of his skin. “I don’t want to be apart again,” he murmurs, leaning his forehead on Joe’s shoulder.

Joe lightly hums a few bars of a song that you recognize but can’t place. Nick sits up and smiles at him, a bright light in his eyes for the first time since you’ve met him. Before you know it, Joe is standing up out of his chair, dusting his hands off, and reaching for Nick.

“Come on,” Joe says, still chewing. And then he lightly sings, “Stars fading but I linger on, dear… Still craving your kiss…”

“How you crave my kiss,” Nick joins in softly.

You’ve given up acting like you’re not paying attention as Joe takes Nick around the waist and they start to slow dance behind the sofa.

“Now I’m longing to linger til dawn, dear…” Joe croons.

“Give me a little kiss. Sweet dreams til sunbeams find you…”

Joe spins Nick lightly around as Nick sings. 

“Sweet dreams that leave all worries behind you… but in your dreams, whatever they be, dream a little dream of me.”

They share a gentle kiss, and then Joe looks over and catches you smiling. You can’t help but give them a little round of applause. 

Nick breaks away from his husband and rubs the back of his neck again. You can see that blush that’s growing familiar creeping back up his cheeks, but Joe bows happily. “Thank you, thank you! We’ll be here all week.” 

You laugh. 

The boys take their seats again and Joe resumes eating as though nothing has happened.

 

* * *

  

Around noon, there’s a knock at the door. The boys look at each other in dread, and when you offer to get it, they let you.

You unlock the deadbolt and open the giant door a few feet, but you stop when there’s a girl on the front step with an iPhone recording in her hand. You think fast and act confused.

“Can I help you?” you ask.

She confidently says, “Hi, I’m looking for the Jonas Brothers.”

You laugh. “Well, let me know if you find them.” You start to close the door, but she interrupts. 

“Wait! Don’t they live here?”

“ _I_ live here,” you tell her. 

“And who are you?” 

You give her a fake first name and ask her who she is. She tells you her first and last name and brightly follows it with, “and this is on Facebook Live!” 

You make an awkward face. “Oh,” you say. “Well, I hope no one’s too disappointed. And if you find the Jonas Brothers, seriously, please let me know.”

“Nuh-uh,” she says, pushing forward as if she’s going to come into the house.

A man’s voice barks for her to stop moving. He’s got a gun pointed at her, and she immediately backs up with her hands in the air. 

“Sorry,” she says shortly, “but I heard they live in this house, and you have no idea how long it took me to get into this neighborhood.”

The man gets to the girl and grabs her by the shoulders. Quickly, a black car pulls up, and the two get into the backseat. The girl shoots you an angry glare, but you just close the door, sure to check the lock twice.

“You okay?” Joe asks, walking up to you and giving you a hug. 

“Yeah, I’m okay.” You try to keep your voice level, but he’s hugging you, he’s _hugging you._

“The gun didn’t freak you out?” he inquires. 

“I’m from Texas,” you remind him. 

“I don't know how she got past security. And we need to get some monitors downstairs,” Nick mutters to himself. “That whole thing could have been avoided.” He pulls out his phone and quickly types out text message to someone.

 

* * *

 

The rest of the day goes much more smoothly. Nick makes a bunch of phone calls and then disappears into ‘the writing room’ for a few hours. Joe mostly watches TV and texts his band. You clean the entire kitchen, organize the sheets, blankets, and towels in the linen closet, and sort through the pantry to figure out what dinner is going to be.

You settle on a cheesy pasta casserole, garlic bread, and some fresh carrots, and you preheat the oven. You’ve just started getting out a glass pan and a metal pot when Joe comes waltzing into the kitchen looking for a snack. 

“Dinner in forty-five minutes,” you warn him. 

“Okay.” He grabs a handful of green grapes from the produce drawer of the fridge and retreats back to the massive sofa. 

“Do you ever get out of the house?” you ask him.

“Not really.” 

“Why?” 

He snorts. “Remember what happened this morning?”

You nod. “Yeah, I guess.” 

“You guess? Try living that constantly every single fucking day,” he sighs. “And they all want a picture and an autograph. It’s exhausting.” He’s not in a bad mood or angry at your question; truthfully, he just sounds tired. But his show comes back from commercial then, so the conversation is dropped.

You cook quietly, only the sounds of hissing steam and the hum of the oven for company. Joe’s show drones on in the background, but it’s stopped registering.

You slide the pasta into the oven and start unloading the dishwasher from when you ran it earlier in the day. It’s still a bit tricky remembering which drawers and cabinets house what – you make a mental note that tomorrow you’re going to reorganize these so they actually make _sense_ – but you manage. 

Once that’s done, you sit down at the kitchen table and jot down some things you want to buy at the grocery store. You make another mental note to chat with Nick about their personal shopper and whether it’s okay for you to take over groceries yet. Then you get up to set the table.

You ask Joe to tell Nick that dinner is ready, and he starts to lift up his phone. “No,” you say. “Go get your brother like a normal person.”

“Husband,” Joe corrects as he stands up.

“Yes, that,” you say shortly. 

“It’s okay,” Joe says carefully, almost like he’s nervous. “I know it seems weird.”

“Actually, it doesn’t,” you admit. “It sounded weirder than it actually is. I see why you two are...” You're not comfortable with the words, but you wave your hand in the air, and he understands.

He actually smiles a little then, more relaxed. He heads down the stairs to the basement, and you sigh to yourself. You’re not going to make that mistake again. 

You get the boys each a glass of ice water and set them on the place mats, and you bring two plates of steaming pasta and vegetables over for them. The basket of bread sits on the corner of the table between their chairs. You’ve disappeared up the stairs toward your room when they come up from the writing room, and you can hear Joe calling for you. You peek your head out from your hallway. “What’s wrong?” 

“Why did you only set two places?” he asks.

Your eyebrows draw together in confusion. “There are only two of you. Right? Is someone coming over?” 

“You’re not our servant,” Nick says. “Come eat with us. Please.” 

“Are you sure?” 

“We’re sure,” they answer in sync. 

You bite your bottom lip to hide a smile. “Okay.” You head back downstairs and make a plate for yourself. Nick sits at the head of the table, and Joe sits next to him. You take the spot across from Joe. 

They both praise your cooking, and they talk about their days. Then Nick asks you about yours. “Oh, it was... you know. I did a lot of cleaning,” you joke.

“Not with lemon, though, right?” Joe asks, and one look at his face tells you he’s dead serious. 

“No, no lemon,” you assure. 

“Thank god.” 

“I think tomorrow I’m going to change the kitchen cabinets around. Is that okay?” 

Nick nods. “Whatever you want.” 

“Okay.” You snap your fingers. “Oh, and that reminds me – did you two talk the shopping guy? Or about it?” 

“No, not yet,” Nick says. He looks up at Joe. “(Y/N) asked if she can do our errands for us. Which means we could fire Pierre.” He drops his voice to a whisper. “Please let me fire Pierre.” 

“I love Pierre!” Joe protests loudly, and Nick huffs.

“You only like him cause he buys the weirdest shit he can find.”

“Yes, Nicholas, like my green rubber duck with the cowboy hat.”

“What?” you laugh incredulously.

"He randomly came home with it one day, and I kept it," Joe explains. "You didn't see it in the bathroom?"

"No," you say, still giggling.

“Pierre needs to be fired,” Nick grumbles. 

“Yeah, most of the time we just throw out at least three of the things he buys,” Joe admits. “Okay, yeah. But have whoever tells him thank him again for my rubber duck.” He shakes his head. “I really fucking love that thing.” 

“We’ll set you up with a credit card,” Nick tells you, ignoring Joe. “If you keep cooking like this, you can buy whatever you want.” 

You smile. “Noted.”


	5. Felt So Close

The next morning, your alarm – no longer DNCE – goes off at 7. You’re downstairs by 7:10, just in time to find Nick depositing his keys on the counter. He’s got light stubble on his chin and a jean jacket over his Guns N Roses t-shirt. He’s home but still hiding under a Yankees baseball cap.

“Hey, you,” you greet, trying to hide your curiosity. 

He nods without speaking. Regardless of his expression, something about his posture is off. You never knew he could look so deflated. 

Your eyebrows crease. “Hey. Are you okay?” you ask softly. 

He shrugs and tries to smile. 

“Here, sit down,” you tell him warmly. “I’ll make you some hot chocolate, okay?” 

He nods again, still silent, and obeys. You set to work putting some milk in a saucepan and mixing in salt, cocoa powder, and sugar. It’s quiet in the kitchen, and when you look over at Nick again, he’s crossed his arms over the table and rested his forehead on them. Whether intentional or not, he’s hiding his face from you. You’re not okay with that.

You take a seat in the chair next to him and rub his back up high between his shoulder blades. He must like this, because he sits up slightly to tug his denim jacket off and remove the hat, and then he lays his head back down on his arms. 

You don’t press for answers, just sit with him and offer your presence. Once you hear the hot chocolate start to boil, you get up and carefully pour the concoction into a mug.

He straightens to take it from you, and he says softly, “I got called to go to LA.” He wraps his fingers around the mug to warm them even though it’s not particularly cold.

Your confusion must be written on your face, because he elaborates.

“It’s not a big deal, it’s only a couple of nights. But I don’t like traveling without Joe. He’s my best friend, and to be honest, I get a little stressed on the road. He makes sure I’m eating right and checking my sugar and that I get a decent amount of sleep and take breaks and all that. I kinda get… lost without him. And I tease him about having separation anxiety from me, but…”

“It’s really you,” you finish gently when he trails off. 

He shrugs, a little ashamed, and takes a sip of his hot chocolate.

“He’s your husband, but he’s also your big brother. That will never change, Nick. You never have to feel guilty about needing him.” 

“I’m twenty-two years old,” he snaps. But immediately, he sighs. “Sorry.” 

You shake your head. “It’s okay.” You can’t help but reach out and run a hand over his hair. “You didn’t get any sleep, did you?” 

“Not really. An hour or so.”

“Why don’t you go lie down?” 

He looks down at his lap. “I can’t.” 

“There are two guest rooms if you don’t want to sleep with Joe,” you point out.

“It’s not that. I’m just… I don’t know.” 

“Sometimes the best thing to do is sleep. Let your body take care of your mind.” You stop rubbing his hair, but he makes a small, sad sound. You smile and resume. 

He takes another sip of his hot chocolate. “Thanks for talking to me,” he murmurs. “I know I’m like a brick wall when I get like this, but thank you. It’s nice to have company.” 

“Of course. Any time,” you say, and you mean it sincerely. This is the least you can do; the boys have been so kind. 

He glances down at the drink. “I know this is caffeinated, but it’s making me so tired.”

“It’s the warmth,” you tell him knowingly. “Go lie down, alright? I’ll tell Joe not to wake you.” 

He shakes his head. “Please don’t say anything to him. I don’t want him to start worrying.”

“Alright.” 

“Promise?” he asks quietly.

You nod. “I promise.” 

He stands up and tiredly starts upstairs, almost leaving his hat and jacket behind. “Nick,” you call softly after him.

He turns and sees you holding up his clothes.

“Don’t wanna blow your cover,” you tease.

The corners of his lips turn up. He walks to you and takes them, draping both of them over his arm. He leans forward then to kiss your cheek. You’re so surprised that you don’t move away, and you wonder if that counts as him cheating on Joe. But it didn’t seem romantic. Maybe that’s just how Nick is. Joe gives hugs, and maybe Nick gives kisses. 

You stop wondering as Nick disappears up the beautiful staircase and you return to your chores. Hopefully he can get at least three hours before Joe wakes up. 

 

* * *

 

 

Joe comes down for breakfast at 10:30 and reports that Nick, shockingly, is still sleeping. He doesn’t seem to think it’s any cause for concern, though. “Sometimes he just can’t sleep,” Joe says dismissively. 

“Do you want cinnamon toast again?” you ask him, not willing to enter yourself in that conversation. 

“Please.” 

“Coming right up,” you smile. You were anticipating this, so you already have all the ingredients out.

He turns the TV (which you’ve started to think of as _his_ TV) on and flips it to Palladia to see the Top 20 Countdown. You can’t believe he’s chosen that because first of all, that’s what you used to watch when you were thirteen. And second of all, he and his friends are actually on it and competing for spots. 

“Cake’s been off this one for a while,” he says. “The song did really well-”

As if you didn’t know that.

“-but I don’t think anyone cared that much about the video. Which is fine – I’d rather them like the song better anyway.” He turns to look at you over the couch and asks, “Hey, who’s your favorite band?” 

You chuckle. “Um.”

“What?”

“Would you kill me if I said the Jonas Brothers?”

He lets out a real laugh then. “Oh, god.”

“What about you? Do you have a favorite?”

“You know Switchfoot?” 

“Yeah!” 

“Yeah, they were my favorite for years. And I really like Sia and The Chainsmokers and Daft Punk. And Beyonce.” 

You nod, and the toast pops out of the toaster. 

Nick shows up on the countdown with Tove Lo for Close, and Joe smiles proudly. “That’s my boy,” he grins.

All of a sudden, you gasp and then duck. 

“What’s wrong?” Joe asks, standing up and coming over. 

“Get down!” you mouth, waving you arm at him.

“What?” he asks, crouching slightly.

“Get! Down!” you hiss desperately. “There’s a guy walking around in the backyard!”

“Are you sure?” he checks, whispering then too.

“ _Yes_ , I’m sure!” you whisper back, a little annoyed that he would question you. 

Joe ducks all the way down too and crawls over on the floor next to you. He slowly gets up to peek out the window, and then he straightens all the way up and pulls you with him. “Look again,” he says flatly. 

There are two guys in the backyard – one with a lawn mower and the other with a leaf blower. 

“Oh – sorry!” you say, but somehow you’re both sitting back down on the floor and dissolving into laughter.

“’Get down! There’s a man in the backyard!’” Joe imitates. 

“Hey! You were the one crawling across the kitchen,” you shoot back, playfully shoving at his arm. 

“I did, I did,” he admits. 

Nick walks into the kitchen to find you both leaning against the cabinets, Joe with tears running down his cheeks from laughing so hard. Nick looks refreshed, and he’s trying not to laugh himself even though he has no idea what’s going on. “What the hell,” he says, shaking his head fondly.

“It’s not,” Joe laughs breathlessly, “it’s not even funny!”

“I saw a guy,” you try to explain, but you’re not sure if he can understand you. 

“AND HE HAD A LEAF BLOWER!” Joe shouts. He crashes into your shoulder, his ribs quaking from hysteria. You know you’re laughing just as hard.

“Oh my god,” Nick mutters, shaking his head and looking up at the ceiling. “I have to deal with two of you now?”

You would apologize, but you and Joe are keeping each other locked in an endless cycle of giggles.

You stand up, still laughing, and try to ask him what he wants for breakfast. But you catch a glimpse of the guys outside and it starts all over again. God, you were so scared. It was so stupid. 

Nick rolls his eyes, but he’s smiling. “I’ll come back later,” he says, and he doesn’t sound even a little bit annoyed. “I’m not hungry yet anyway.”

 

* * *

 

Half an hour later, you make Nick’s breakfast (brunch?) and head around the corner to clean the dining room table. Since you’re only a few feet away, you can hear it when Nick says to Joe, “We need to talk about something.” 

Joe sounds nervous. “Okay.” 

Nick sighs, and you can hear him lightly tapping his fork against the plate. “I have to go to LA.”

“What?” Joe asks sadly.

“Yeah, Cory called last night after you fell asleep. They’re making me reshoot one of the promos for Kingdom. It won’t take long, but…”

“But you have to go.”

“Yeah. They want me out there tonight so I can start at 5 tomorrow morning.”

Joe sucks in a breath.

“It’s only two days,” Nick says softly. “They promised.”

There’s quiet and then the sound of fabric rustling against fabric. 

“Okay,” Joe murmurs. 

“Are you mad?” Nick asks. 

“No, of course I’m not mad,” Joe says, and you can tell he’s being genuine. “Are you upset?” 

There’s a pause. “A little.”

“I’ll call and check in on you all the time,” Joe promises. "Make sure you're eating your Wheaties and wearing clean underwear." 

“And we can Skype?” Nick asks hopefully. 

There’s the sound of a gentle kiss. “Every hour.” 

“I love you,” Nick says. 

“I love you, too.” A beat passes, and then Joe says, “Dude, you know that’s 3am our time.” 

“Fuck,” Nick mutters, and Joe chuckles.

“I’ll set an alarm if you want. I’ll call you and wish you good morning.”

“Good middle-of-the-night,” Nick sighs.

“Hey, you love Kingdom,” Joe reminds. 

“I do. And the promo is with Frank, so it'll probably be fun and over fast. And I’ll probably get lunch with Jonathan and Tara while I’m out there.”

“See, it won’t be so bad,” Joe says, a smile evident in his voice. “You’ll be home before you know it.”

It’s going to be odd with just one Jonas in the house, but if you’re being truthful, you’d rather it be Joe than Nick. Joe seems a bit more relaxed. And you’ll get to sleep in a little. You can already feel that you’ll miss Nick, though. 

A sleek sports car comes at 7 that night to pick up Nick, and inside, you give the younger brother a hug. “We’ll miss you,” you tell him. 

“I’ll miss you, too,” he says with a small smile. “Thanks for taking care of me this morning.” 

“Of course. Call if you need anything.” 

“I’m gonna miss your cooking already,” he says wistfully, and you laugh.

Then it’s Joe’s turn. The two share a tight hug and then a sweet kiss.

“I love you so much,” Joe says.

“I love you, too.” Nick shuts his eyes in Joe’s embrace. “I wish you could come with me.”

“Hey, I gotta hold the fort down here. And remember, it-”

“It would look weird, I know,” Nick finishes glumly. “At least you get (Y/N).” 

You can’t help but smile. 

“Bye,” Joe says, kissing his lips again. They squeeze hands, and then let go. The two of them walk outside side by side, but when they get to the car, all they exchange is a tight hug.

"Call me as soon as you land."

"I will."

“Love you, bro,” Joe says, tucking his hands in his pockets as Nick slides into the seat.

“You, too,” Nick replies.

But the look they share is something more. 

Joe waves as the car drives away and walks back up to the door where you’re waiting. He looks so sad.

“Come on,” you say, taking him by the arm. “I’ll make you some sweets, alright?”

He nods, and you shut the door behind you, sure to check the lock twice.


	6. But You Were Far

That night, you and Joe sit side by side on the L-shaped couch and watch a rerun of Game of Thrones before Joe unceremoniously declares, “I’m gonna go to bed.” 

It’s barely nine, but you nod. “Alright. I’ll be here a while.” 

“Goodnight.” 

“Night.”

He treads slowly up the stairs, and you can almost feel the sadness in each of his steps. Damn, those two boys are codependent. 

You switch to Parks and Rec, trying to make yourself feel a little brighter. It’s that glorious episode about the possum on the golf course, and it works – you do feel a lot better after just two minutes with it. 

When you head upstairs, you can hear quiet sounds coming from Joe’s room. You’re pretty sure he’s crying, so you knock gently on the door. The sounds don’t stop. “Joe?” you ask, pushing the door open a few inches.

But what you see – oh, god. What you see is _not_ a heartbroken boy. What you see is Joe, completely naked, with his cock in his hand. He’s whimpering as he jerks himself off – that’s the sound you heard. But what your eyes land on next is just as bad. 

Joe’s watching porn, but not just any porn. It’s a homemade sex tape starring Nick and himself. You can’t help but watch for a moment; it’s like a car crash. You can’t look away. And maybe, just maybe, you get a little wet between your legs. 

In the video, Nick has Joe on his knees. He’s behind him, slamming his hips into Joe over and over again. God, it’s hot. It shouldn’t be, but it is. It’s so fucking hot. 

Joe sees you, but he doesn’t stop touching himself He gasps your name almost hungrily, and your stomach turns over. You shut the door quickly and lean against it for a second. The sounds of Joe moaning fade as you rush down the hall toward your room. You close your door and let your hand cover your mouth. What the hell. What the _hell_.

Joe freaking Jonas just moaned your name while he was masturbating to a video of himself getting absolutely nailed by his little brother. And you got a little horny. You can’t get the image of Joe masturbating out of your head.

You bury your face in your hands. Work is going to be so awkward tomorrow.

 

* * *

 

Forget tomorrow - thirty minutes later, there’s a knock at your bedroom door. Joe’s hair is wet from the shower, and he’s dressed in a white Henley and a pair of gray sweats. “I’m _so_ sorry,” he apologizes. “Can we just… forget about what happened in there?”

You laugh uncomfortably. “Please.” 

“Alright, thanks. I know that was awkward as fuck, and I went and made it ten times worse. But, uh. Yeah. I’ll see you in the morning, right?”

“Yeah.”

He starts to close the door and then pauses. “Hey, did Nick ever show you how to use the shower?”

“Uh, no. I’ve been using the one in the basement.”

Joe wrinkles his nose.

“Trust me, it’s not that bad,” you protest, almost laughing at his reaction. To a normal person, that shower is completely fine. It's pretty nice, actually, although maybe a little cramped. But to make Joe feel better, you add, “I’ll have him show me when he gets home.” 

Joe nods, tugging absently at the bottom of his shirt. “Alright.” Then he smiles a little. 

“What?” 

He shakes his head, but the smile is still on his lips. “You said home.”

 

* * *

  

Surprisingly, Joe’s amendment works. Things are fairly normal in the morning. 

You sleep until you wake up without an alarm, and then you head downstairs to start your usual morning routine. Coffee in the pot, though you make a little less today because Nick won’t be drinking any. You think about what to do and assign yourself some work. Today, it’s the drawers and cabinets in the kitchen. You didn’t exactly get to them yesterday afternoon with all the extra laundry you picked up before Nick went on his trip. He wanted his pillowcase washed (apparently he takes the same pillowcase everywhere?) and a couple shirts, but you wound up just doing two full loads of the boys’ laundry.

Once you’re done in the kitchen, you’ll make sure the things you hung to dry overnight have had enough time, and then you’ll fold them. But for now, you let yourself focus on the drawers and cabinets.

Joe interrupts you pretty quickly and asks for waffles. You surprise him with chocolate chip waffles and whipped cream, and he gives you a kiss on the cheek just like Nick had the morning before. You ruffle his hair and kiss the top of his head, and he seems satisfied. You push the memory of how gorgeous he looked all loose and undone last night out of your mind. You try not to want to hear him moan your name again. 

 

* * *

 

Nick Skypes in around 2pm, and Joe puts him up on the huge flat screen in the living room.

“Hey!” Nick grins widely at the sight of his husband. He looks good, much better than when he left yesterday, and he’s wearing a Navy Street t-shirt. It’s obvious from the light that he’s sitting outside. He’s got a Starbucks cup in his hand and headphones disappearing into his ears.

“Hey, babe,” Joe smiles. “How’s LA?”

“Bright,” Nick replies, glancing up at whatever is in front of him and squinting. “Crowded.”

“And how was getting up before the crack of dawn?”

He groans in lieu of an answer.

You’re in the kitchen, but your laugh must bubble out loud enough to be captured by Joe’s computer, because Nick says, “Do I hear (Y/N)?”

“(Y/N), get out here,” Joe commands. He turns back to Nick and confesses, “She caught me jerking off to that porno we made last spring.”

Nick’s eyes bug out, and then he cracks up.

“Yeah, hello to you, too,” you sass, shaking your head.

“You’re so lucky I have headphones in,” Nick says to Joe, still laughing. “There are like eight people standing here.” He looks to you. “Which part did you see?”

Your eyes widen. “I don’t know! I don’t – I couldn’t exactly focus. I was a little caught off guard. And horrified.” 

“Hey, my dick takes offense to that,” Joe teases.

"Your dick is beautiful - don't worry," you joke, but then you blush scarlet. Oh, fuck.  _Fuck._

You look up at the screen just in time to see Nick running his tongue over his bottom lip. These boys are going to be the death of you.

“Okay, okay,” you say, putting your hands up and quickly heading back to the cabinets you’re working on. “I’m out. Nick, have a good time. And be safe, please.”

“I will. And hey, if you wanna treat Joe to anything special while I’m gone, be my guest.”

“Nick, shut up,” Joe scolds.

Nick just shrugs. “I’m serious.”

 

* * *

   
  
Somehow, you manage to get Joe out of the house for about thirty minutes. It takes a lot of coaxing, and truth be told, he’s pretty grumpy about it, but in the end, he agrees anyway.

You tell him you’re getting Taco Bell, and that if he wants anything, he has to come with you. 

“If they see my car, someone will follow us.”

“So we’ll take mine.”

“They’ll still see me inside.” 

You smile a mischievous smile. 

“What?” he asks.

“Hide.”

He scoffs. “We’re not in middle school.”

You brush your hair out of your eyes and shrug. “Alright. No Taco Bell for you.”

“I don’t need it,” he says hesitantly, trying to convince himself. “I'll have to work out twice as hard if I eat it.” 

“I think I’m gonna get a chicken quesadilla and one of those Dorito tacos,” you tell him, pretending to think out loud as you pick up your keys. 

“Fuck you,” he spits, narrowing his eyes.

You shrug playfully. “Oh, come on, Joseph. Go hide in the car. _It’ll be an adventure_ ,” you say, repeating what he told you on your first night in the house.

He drops his shoulders and tilts his head up to the ceiling. “Fine,” he dramatically sighs. “ _Just_ for the sake of adventure. But if anyone sees us, I am _not_ dealing with it.”

“Alright, sure, whatever. Come on.”

You go down to the garage, and Joe climbs into the backseat. He lays down as best he can on the floor, and you try not to laugh. You currently have a Jonas Brother willingly lying down in your car and pulling a blanket over himself to make sure no one sees him. How did this become your life? 

“Okay, drive,” he whispers. 

You _do_ laugh then. “No one can hear you, you know. The windows are up. And even if they weren’t, we’re still literally in the garage.”

“Oh. Right.”

You chuckle again and turn the engine over. It’s the first time you’ve left the house since you came for dinner a few days before, and you’re not going to lie; it’s a little weird driving through all the security at the gate. (Joe assures you that since he’s not getting out of the car, there’s no need for a guard to accompany the two of you on your dinner escapade.) 

You wave, and they let you through. No cars follow you.

When you’re about a mile down the road and you confirm that there's no one tailing your car, Joe gets out from under the blanket and climbs into the passenger seat. (He does this way more smoothly than he should; clearly he's been getting in some practice.) He puts his seatbelt on, grabs his cell phone from his pocket, and gleefully announces, “I’m telling Nick we got free!”

The two of you share a high-five. 

There’s a comfortable silence between the two of you. Pop radio is playing softly from your speakers, and Cake By the Ocean comes on. Joe smiles but changes it. “Too many times,” he explains, and he presses your CD button. “What’s in here?”

“No!” you cry, but it’s too late. Sounds of Nick’s voice fill the car, and Joe barks out a laugh. He pops the CD out, expecting it to be the album, but it’s not – god, it’s far, far worse. It’s a silver disc labeled in black Sharpie, “Nick ♡.” Joe howls with laughter and snaps a picture to send to his brother. Husband.

He goes through your other CDs and settles on something you can’t see. The first chord of Sia’s ‘Alive’ hits the air, and you say, “Ah.”

“Best of Sia,” he said. “Looked intriguing. You’ve got a lot of Best Of-s here.”

You shrug. “I guess.”

“No, like every single CD here is your version of Best Of someone or other.” 

You shrug again, and then you’re pulling into the Taco Bell drive-thru, and Joe is pulling his black baseball cap lower over his face.

“Thank you for choosing Taco Bell!” a girl chirps through the machine. “Order when you’re ready.” 

You get your aforementioned chicken quesadilla and two Doritos Locos tacos, and Joe asks you for a burrito with no onions and three Cool Ranch tacos. You both get large sodas, too, and the girl gives you your total and asks you to pull to the window. 

Joe hands you a credit card, but you insist on paying. “It’s my treat,” you tell him firmly. “I invited you. Plus, you don't wanna give yourself away with your name on a credit card, now do you?”

"No, I guess I don't." He smiles and sits back. You wonder when the last time was that someone told him not to pay and meant it. 

When it’s your turn at the window, Joe sinks low into his seat and busies himself with his phone. You know that he’s desperate not to be recognized, so you sit up a little more than usual and angle yourself sideways to block him. You hope it works.

The girl opens the window and asks, while she runs your credit card, if you need any sauce.

“Mild,” Joe mutters, just loud enough for you to hear. 

You relay the request to the girl, and she throws a generous handful into your bag before handing it to you with your credit card. “Have a nice day,” she says.

“You, too.”

And you drive off.

Joe is ecstatic. He pulls his hat off and runs his fingers through his hair, smiling. “No one recognized me!” he cheers. 

You smack him lightly on the shoulder and pass him the bag of tacos. 

“What was that for?” he asks, a mock pout on his lips. 

 _Because I like you_ , you want to say, but you just shrug and smile.

“It smells so good,” Joe whispers, opening the bag a little to take a sniff. 

“I know. I’m super hungry now.” 

He smells the stuff in the bag again, and you decide it’s time to ask the question that’s been on your mind since the oddly quick hiring process. 

“Hey, can I ask you something?” 

“Sure.”

“Why did you pick me to work for you? Like, out of all the other applicants. I’m sure you must have had a million; I found the listing on a random website I use to find jobs.” 

“There were a lot of people, yes. Me and Nick went through all the headshots of the people that the agency thought seemed safe, and you were the only one that was smiling.” 

Your eyebrows raised. “What?”

“Yeah. Everyone else was either trying to look like a model or they were like, badly snapped selfies. You looked normal, genuine. You looked _nice._ You were actually the only person we met with.”

“What?!” you ask again. 

Joe shrugs like it’s the most obvious thing in the world. “My family has had to work with a lot of people. And through it, we sort of figured out that it’s not so much the resume that counts as it is the way people’s eyes are. I know it sounds silly, but my dad was the one that figured it out, and it’s so true. Me and Nick still stick by that.”

You nod. “Wow. I’m glad I smiled in my picture, I guess.”

“It’s not that,” Joe says, taking a sip of his soda. “It just helped us see what was in your eyes.”


	7. Away

You and Joe have just finished your delicious meal on the couch, and you're watching as Joe clicks through channel after channel on the giant television. There’s something about it, though - something that sets off butterflies in your stomach. Neither of you are speaking, but you’re not angry or bored. Just calm and companionable.

Joe’s search for something good to watch is interrupted by Skype suddenly covering the screen. “Elvis Costello calling…” it says. You definitely missed that part last time.

Joe answers, and Nick’s smiling face pops up. “Hey!”

“Hey,” Joe smiles back. “You look happy.” 

“I just got back from a late lunch with Jonathan and Tara. They brought Rothko, so we sat on the patio and I got to play with him. The food was good, and talking to them was so much fun. There were a couple paparazzi there, but they mostly left us alone, which was awesome. How’s Elvis?”

You’ve never heard Nick talk so quickly, but you’re so relieved to see him this happy. Truth be told, he seemed so sad when he left that you were a little worried. But you’re glad he’s been able to reconnect with his friends. 

“Slow down, sugar,” Joe teases, smirking.

Nick sighs, but the smile remains on his face. “Shut up.” 

“Elvis is fine. Still shedding all over the fucking place, but you know. He’s happy. Okay, guess what (Y/N) and I did today!” 

“I don’t know. What?” 

“No, you have to guess,” Joe whines.

“Um… you… um… you went to the Cowboys game?”

“That was actually a good one,” Joe muses, “but no. We didn’t go to the game, but we did… gooooo… tooooooooo...” 

Nick raises his eyebrows, waiting without buying into Joe’s attempt at suspense. 

“Taco Bell!” he cries. “We went to Taco Bell, and nobody recognized me!”

“What?” Nick replies incredulously. “That’s not possible.” 

“Well, we didn’t get out of the car,” Joe admits. 

Nick shakes his head. “That would explain it.” 

“I had to lie down in the backseat so no one would see at the gate, but we made it without anyone following us because they thought (Y/N) was the only one in the car!”

“Smart,” Nick nods.

“And then she paid for the food, and I wanted to kiss her,” he laughs. 

“So do it,” Nick says evenly. 

Joe freezes. Your eyebrows rise. Joe shifts on the cushion next to you.

“Joseph,” Nick says, his voice still different than you’ve heard. It’s almost like he’s giving orders. “I said do it.”

Joe looks at you and swallows nervously. “Is that okay?” he whispers. 

You’re staring at his lips when you nod.

Joe leans forward and lifts a hand to your chin. Your lips meet; you feel a rush in your belly. His lips are soft, and he’s gentle with you. You weren’t sure what to expect, but it seems safe and almost innocent as his tongue slips into your mouth. It feels right. You kiss for a moment, and you can sense Nick watching you from California. It makes your skin feel hot.

You open your eyes and sit back, looking into Joe's chocolate gaze. He’s so beautiful. 

You look back up at the screen just in time to see Nick’s tongue ghosting over his lips again. He gently bites his bottom lip. “Good.” He looks up over the computer screen and then drops his voice and mutters, “I have to go. If you’re gonna do more, set up a camera. I want to see everything later.” And the call ends. 

Joe looks at you, still blushing and a little breathless. He takes your hand and motions you upstairs.

Holy fuck.


	8. Left Me Without Anything to Say

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i cant believe i wrote this, but i wrote this  
> throwback to middle school me *peace sign emoji*  
> we've officially come full circle (insert miley song here)

Nick and Joe’s room looks different at dusk. The curtains are wide open, but you like it. It feels dangerous somehow. The sun is just starting to fade, and you love the fact that Joe doesn’t flood the room with artificial light. He just leaves it up to nature.

His hands tremble a little as he sets the laptop down on the desk and positions it so the built-in camera is facing the bed.

“It’s not on yet,” he says, catching your shy glance. “Don’t worry. If you don’t want to do anything, it's-” 

“I want to.”

Joe nods and hits the space bar. The green light next to the camera turns on. 

He takes your hands, both of them this time, and walks with you to the foot of the bed. He peels his shirt off and drops it on the floor, and you’re so busy staring at his muscles that you jump a little when his hands squeeze around your waist. 

He leans forward and kisses you, and you run your hands down his sides. He gives a light shiver. You get his bottom lip between your teeth, and you tug at it gently. He moans. You smile. 

That was easy. 

He reaches for your shirttail and pulls it up, and you take a step back so he can peel it over your head. He tosses it to the floor a few feet away from his, and before you can think, your mouth is back on his. He’s fucking delicious. 

He moves forward, forcing you to step back, and your thighs bump into the mattress. You sink down onto it, which seems to be what he wants, and he unclasps your bra and unbuttons his pants. You shrug the bra off as he loses his jeans and boxers.

Your skin feels hot in the best way, and when he climbs on top of you and starts kissing you again, you’re sure this is the craziest thing that’s ever happened to you. Not that that’s a bad thing. At all. 

Your hands ghost up and down his shoulders as he kneels over your hips, but you really lose it when he starts to press kisses down your throat. You take a trembling breath and reach down between his legs, and he groans.

It escalates then, everything. He yanks your jeans and underwear down, and you kick them the rest of the way off. He reaches under your spine with one arm and lifts you up. You wrap your legs around his waist out of instinct, but it turns out to be exactly what he wants you to do. He sits on the edge of the bed where you just were and lets you sink down on his dick, ever so slowly.

You know you’re breathing hard right into his ear, but he doesn’t move away. If anything, he leans closer. He wraps a strong arm around your hips and starts thrusting.

“Oh my god,” you breathe, and he lets out a chuckle. 

Your mouth drops open, though, and you can’t help but make a soft sound as he brushes against that sweet spot between your legs. You latch your arms around his shoulders and bury one of your hands in his hair.

He groans your name, and you shift back a few inches so you can press your lips to his. You’ve never let someone fuck you like this. You’ve never even let anyone _kiss_ you like this. You’re going to think about this forever. 

“Joe,” you gasp. “Joseph… Joseph…”

He swallows your words down with another kiss, his hot breath flowing into your mouth. It feels right, though. It feels –

“Oh, god,” he mutters, and drops his head onto your shoulder. You run your fingers through his hair again and again, ever so gentle until he hits you inside a certain way and you can’t help but _yank_ his hair back. His head follows with it, exposing his throat to you, and it’s his turn for his mouth to fall open.

“Yeah,” he moans, “yeah, just like that.”

You twist your fingers in his hair and pull again, and he hits you hard inside. It’s only been a few minutes, but you whisper a warning; he says he’s right there with you. 

It’s over quickly. Or at least it seems that way. He gets off right before you do, and you let him milk his orgasm as much as he can. He lays back on the bed, completely spent, and tucks you under his arm.

The stillness is almost odd after the frantic sex. It had come from a burst of arousal, and it was all Nick’s fault. 

Oh, yeah. Nick.

You force your body up away from Joe, and he keens softly as you move away.

“I’ll be right back,” you promise. You lean down for one kiss, and then another. Then you wrap a blanket around your body and walk up to the laptop. You smile shyly into the camera and then stop the recording. Then you go back to the bed and slip under the covers. He tucks you back under his arm, and you lie quietly together. 

“Was that weird?” he asks, his voice barely a whisper. 

“I don’t know,” you answer. “I don’t think so.” 

He smiles. “Me either.” 

You can’t help the surge of electricity that flows through you. It prompts you to lean forward and happily kiss him. He lets out a small laugh but kisses you back. 

You lie with him for a while, not really talking, just existing. It’s still too early for sleep, so you eventually sit up and gather your clothes as best you can while keeping yourself wrapped in the white satin sheet. 

He doesn’t try to stop you, but he watches while you leave. That feels like enough. 

You fiddle with the waterfall shower in your bathroom for a while before you give up and head for the shower in the basement. You shut your eyes under the stream of water and smile as you think about Joe and what just happened. Certainly not the way you’d been expecting the day to go, especially after you took him to Taco Bell. Guess Joe’s a cheap date. 

You chuckle to yourself and rinse off. Once your hair is combed out and you’re dressed in pajama shorts and an oversized t-shirt, you take your time walking around the basement. If you’re honest, you haven’t spent as much time down there as you should, but the boys seem to see it as such a sanctuary - Nick, especially - so you've left it alone.

You open the door to the recording studio they set up, and you go sit in the desk chair behind the computer. It feels expensive. You run your hands down the arms and imagine what Nick and Joe must do when they’re alone together. The way they’d glisten with sweat, the way their breath would sound, the way their muscles would ripple. The way they looked in that home video, open and raw and gorgeous. Truthfully, after tonight, you kind of want to see more of it. The whole thing.

And then you wonder whether Nick will touch himself when he sees the video of Joe fucking you. The way Joe moaned your name and you whispered his. You wonder if it’ll get him off. If he’ll watch it again. 

You bite your lip and stand up quickly from the chair. Joe was plenty. You don’t need to be thinking about Nick like that, too. Or them together. Or them together with you.

You sigh to yourself and head up the stairs as quietly as possible. You’re not quite sure why, but you don’t want Joe to hear you. You make it to your room and close the door without a peep from Joe, but Elvis follows you into your bedroom. He hops up on the bed with you and snuggles against your leg as you click through the channels on your TV. Eventually you flip the whole thing off, giving up. You scratch Elvis behind the ears and wonder how the hell you’re supposed to sleep tonight.


	9. Now I'm Speechless

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's been so long!! Porn is weird for me, so I'd been putting it off.

Nick comes home the next afternoon. He’s exhausted, but he smiles genuinely at the sight of you in the kitchen. He says your name and moves forward for a tight hug. The way his lips brush against your cheek doesn’t go unnoticed. 

He doesn’t let you help him with his bags. He doesn’t actually take them anywhere himself either; he says while he was on the plane he had a melody in his head, and he needs to go straight downstairs to sing it into a microphone before he forgets it. 

You smile fondly as you watch him jog down the steps. God bless these boys.

You whip up some crepes for Nick and let the batter sit until he comes upstairs a few minutes later. Then you start to cook them.

“You’re the best,” he says. 

You smile and then run a hand over his short hair and down his cheek. “You look tired.”

“Thanks,” he replies, completely deadpan.

You laugh as you start to rinse the mixing bowl and the whisk that you used to cook. “You should go up and get some sleep with your boy. He’s napping.”

“Maybe.”

“He missed you a lot,” you tell him. 

He smirks. “Mm, I don’t know about that. Looks like you showed him a good time.”

You whack him with the dishtowel. 

“I watched the video,” he offers. Then he glances up and down your body. “Twice.”

He sees your cheeks turn pink, but he doesn’t stop talking.

“Joe sent it last night, and it took me two tries to get through the whole thing, if you know what I mean. I watched it again this morning. I didn’t get through it that time, either. And it’s not exactly a long video.”

“Eat your food,” you say dismissively, turning back to the sink.

He chuckles. “Shy, huh?”

Luckily, Joe chooses that moment to waltz down the stairs. “Nicholas!” he cries, and he runs up to Nick, who’s already out of his chair anticipating a hug.

“Hey, babe,” he grins as they collide. 

The rest of the hug is quiet, each brother clinging to the other as if they were holding on for dear life. You avert your eyes and let them have their intimate moment privately. There’s something about them when they’re together that feels… sacred. You’re not ready to be a part of that yet. 

“I’ve been dying to fuck you,” Nick murmurs into Joe’s ear, just loud enough that you can make out the words.

You let yourself glance back up just in time to see Joe’s fingers turn white around Nick’s jacket. And then you peek up to where Nick’s face is, and he’s looking straight at you. You swallow nervously. What the hell does that look mean? 

“But first,” Nick says quietly, “I want to watch you fuck _her_.” 

Joe lets go of Nick, surprised, and looks at you.

You know you’re standing wide-eyed and anxious like a deer in the headlights, but then Joe’s lips turn up at the corners, silently asking you if you’re okay with it. For some reason, you are.

You set the whisk down in the sink and dry your hands on a towel. Nick takes your hand and then Joe’s, and he leads you both up the stairs.

You’re not as surprised as you probably should be when Nick takes a seat across the room from the bed and starts giving you and Joe directions. First, he wants you both to undress each other until you’re both naked. No undressing yourself; just the other person. Then he tells the two of you to kiss. You do. Joe runs his hands over your breasts, and Nick quickly interjects, making you both jump. 

“Nuh-uh. I didn’t say touch her. I just said kiss her.”

Joe nods. 

Something about all of this is so strange and sexy that you can feel yourself getting more and more turned on. Joe bites your bottom lip between his teeth and tugs it back, and you let out a soft whine and slightly bend your knees in desire. You look at Nick again over Joe’s shoulder, and this time it’s not out of curiosity. This time, it’s in desperation as Joe presses those open, wet kisses you love down the side of your neck.

Nick runs his tongue over his lips again. That damn tongue.

“Get on the bed,” Nick says, and it’s directed right at you. 

You and Joe move quickly, both ready for what comes next. It’s all up to Nick, though; for some reason, both of you have given yourselves over so easily, so completely.

“Joe, lie down. (Y/N)…”

You look over when he trails off, and he motions you on top of his brother. You go easily.

“Kiss him,” he commands.

That’s even easier. 

After a few moments of him watching you and Joe making out naked, he decides he’s ready for more. He says as much, and it’s so satisfying to sink down on top of Joe’s dick. Thirty seconds pass with you riding Joe and your breath speeding up. Nick is up out of his chair and coming towards you, undoing his jeans as he walks. 

You can’t help but look over at him, and he’s looking at you, too. You let out a soft, involuntary noise when your eyes meet, and he practically lunges at your mouth. His lips are rough, but his hands are gentle, cupping around your jaw and behind your neck. You never knew you were so hungry for this. One boy would have been plenty, but two? You’ve never been so turned on in your life. 

Nick’s got one hand dipped into his boxer briefs, and the other is reaching down so he can run his fingers through Joe’s hair. You keep sliding up and down Joe’s cock. Nick starts murmuring praises to the two of you, and you can’t seem to stop from grabbing at one of Joe’s hands and lacing your fingers through it. You need some stabilization, and Joe’s arms are the only thing within reach that are still. 

You can feel your wetness on your own skin, sticky and cool between your legs, and just knowing that it’s coating Joe too is such a sexy thought. You look at Nick again, and he senses your need for his lips. He gives them to you. You take.

“Slow down,” Nick says a moment later, pulling back from you and talking to both you and his husband.

You try to, but it proves more difficult than you expect. Joe feels so full inside you, and his ragged breath is so sexy, and it's all so much.

“Slow down,” Nick repeats, almost a whisper this time. You watch him stroke over Joe’s forehead several times, and the tenderness of it is just beautiful. Then Nick swipes the same fingers over your clit. Your mouth drops open. A desperate whine spills out. 

“More?” Nick asks. He’s definitely teasing, but you don’t care. You’re so close to the edge.

You nod frantically. He wraps an arm around your waist and lets you lean into him a little as he draws slow circles over your clit.

“I’m-” you start, but he draws his hand away. 

“No you’re not,” he interrupts. “Slow down. Slow down.” 

You want to protest, but there’s something in you telling you that you shouldn’t. That you can’t.

He plants kisses down the side of your throat just like Joe had, and it’s so sexy. And then his mouth is on your shoulder, on your collarbone. 

“Nick, please,” you beg. 

“Please what?” 

“Nicholas,” Joe moans. 

“I need to come,” you pant. “I need – _please_.”

“Both of you?” Nick asks. 

“Yes,” you both groan in unison.

Nick is quiet for a moment, just watching the two of you. Then he says, “Ten,” and Joe lets out a keening sound. “Do you want to come or not?” Nick asks.

Joe is silent. 

“That’s what I thought. Nine.” 

“I can’t, I can’t,” you whisper. 

“Eight... Seven...”

“Nick, please, oh my god. Oh my god.”

“Just hold on. You can do it. You can do it. Six.” 

You’re squeezing your eyes shut and holding Joe’s hand as tightly as you can.

“Five.”

This is never going to end, is it? You’re going to come early and disappoint him. You try to slow your body down. 

“Don’t,” he says, and he traces a fingernail down your spine. You shiver and try to pick up the pace. “Four.” 

“Nicholas,” Joe begs.

“Three.” 

“Please,” you repeat. 

“Shh, both of you. Two… One.”

Your body slows considerably as you let your orgasm rock through you. You can feel Joe inside of you, warm and firm and trembling. 

You relax against Nick’s shoulder as the incredible feeling rushes through your body. Joe continues to shake underneath you. He still can’t seem to let go of your hand. “Oh my god,” he sighs.

“Worth the wait?” Nick asks.

Joe nods. 

Nick grins wolfishly and runs a hand over your right breast, down your side, over your hip, and down to your clit. He rubs it again, and you about jump out of your skin.

“No-!” you cry, overstimulated.

Nick kisses your jaw. “Good. Wanted to make sure you really came.” 

You almost laugh. “Did you think I was faking?” 

Nick shrugs. “Just had to be sure. I want you taken care of.”

That makes you feel even warmer. Your heart twinges happily, and you kiss his cheek and then lean down to kiss Joe’s lips some more. It’s languid and slow and calm. Both of you are physically exhausted.

Nick watches for a moment and then orders, “Get some rest.”

Joe is happy to oblige immediately. You slide up off of him, not realizing how much pressure you'd been putting on your knees until you moved them. Ouch. You start to get off the bed, but Nick looks surprised. 

“No, stay here. Stay.” 

You blink up at him, and at his sure expression, you nod. Slowly, carefully, you lie down on Nick's pillow, and Joe slides toward you. 

For the second time this week, you’re snuggled up against Joe fucking Jonas in the bed he shares with Nick. You can feel his heart battering against his rib cage, but he seems fully relaxed. His eyes are shut, and his lips are slightly parted as he sinks into his exhaustion. 

You, on the other hand, are still alert. Nick notices and moves around the bed to where you are. He sits down next to you and starts stroking your forehead the way he did for Joe a moment ago. He doesn’t speak – that would disturb Joe, who’s already half-asleep – but he stays, his hand warm as it drifts over your skin and slides comfortably into your hair. You feel like a kitten, but in a good way. Warm and loved.

Sleep comes quickly once you let yourself relax. You barely hear Nick leave the room.


	10. Over

You nap for about two hours, and when you wake, Joe isn’t beside you anymore. You run an absent hand over the sheets to find that his spot is still warm. He must have just gotten out of bed. 

You take your time sitting up and stretching. Your hand brushes down between your legs – your body still tells the tale of what happened today. When you’re dressed and heading down the stairs, you notice the wonderful aroma of marinara sauce and cheese wafting up to you. A closer sniff, and you ask out loud, “Pizza Hut?”

Joe turns from where he’s sitting on the couch – still naked – and looks up at you with a mouthful of food. “Yup,” he says, the sound muffled by pizza crust.

You look to Nick as you keep walking, and he confirms it with a nod. “I got hungry,” he admits. 

“I’m so sorry. You should have woken me up; I would have made you something.”

Nick smiles. “You deserved your rest.” 

You cast your eyes to your feet, but you’re smiling, too. 

“Come on,” he says, motioning you towards them. “We were just trying to pick a movie.”

You open one box and then the other and go for a piece of cheese.

“A girl after my own heart,” Joe declares as he eyes your selection. He jams a thumb at his brother. “He likes the ones with all the fucking vegetables.”

You wrinkle your nose. “Not on pizza.” 

“Yes!” Joe exclaims. “That’s exactly what I tell him!” 

“Think you’d be used to it by now,” Nick mutters, clearly not bothered by the jabs. He’s flipping through Netflix with determination, and you sit down on the couch between them. Without taking his gaze off the screen, Nick shifts forward so that his arm can rest on the back of the sofa over your shoulders.

You look down at your pizza and fight a smile.

Of course, Joe notices that, too. “Nick,” Joe says, and he tips his head at you to get Nick to look.

“Shut up,” you mumble.

“Aw, she’s blushing!” Joe gushes. 

“No, I’m not!”

Nick leans forward and kisses your cheek. “You’re so cute.”

That makes you smile for real, and your stomach twists happily. “Can you please just pick a movie?” 

Joe covertly moves his fingers over to you and tickles your side, which has you squeaking and jumping away from him. Which also means you’re jumping toward Nick.

The younger brother wraps a protective arm around you and says, “Hey, cut it out. She’s eating.”

You settle into his side, and his fingers run up and down your shoulder. Joe pouts on his end of the couch, but soon enough, he’s got his head in your lap as you watch some docudrama that Nick’s been wanting to see all month. It’s kind of a dark movie but actually pretty good, and you’re glad that Nick wrangled Joe into agreeing. You, still feeling like an outsider, stayed neutral. You’re left breathless by the twist at the end, and when it’s over, Joe actually applauds.

“I told you,” Nick leers.

“Shut up.” 

“Guys,” you warn, and they stop.

“Sorry,” they respond in sync, and it’s even cuter than you remember. 

Joe insists that he’s going to clean up the pizza boxes and drinks so that Nick can finally show you how to operate the shower in your bathroom. You protest, but Joe waves you off, and before you know it, Nick’s pulling you up the stairs again anyway, so there's not much of a point in resisting. You instantly fall in love with the free stream of water and tell Nick that once you get in, you’re never getting out. He laughs.

Both Jonases meet you at your door to kiss you goodnight, Nick on the cheek and Joe on the lips. You smile as Elvis trots up to you for his nightly slumber on your bed. “Hey, puppy,” you say to him, giving him a fond scratch behind the ears. He rubs contentedly against your leg.

“He loves her so much,” Joe tells Nick. “Sleeps in her room every damn night.” 

“I like him, too,” you add. 

Nick replies, “As long as he doesn’t like you more than me.” You can tell he’s only half-joking. 

The three of you say goodnight again, and you go into your room. Sleep doesn’t come easily to you tonight, so an hour later finds you heading for the staircase, thinking maybe you can get some work done if you’re not going to get any rest. You’re on the top step when a sound catches your ear.

You pause, knowing that you shouldn’t give into temptation, but you’re more curious than you’ve been in quite some time. After a moment more of hesitation, you pad quietly down the hall toward the bedroom Nick and Joe share. 

You can hear moans coming through the door – that’s Joe. Definitely Joe. “Harder,” he begs, and then there’s a satisfied sound filling the air. 

“I missed you so much,” Nick says breathily, and you can hear the wet smack of a rough kiss. 

You bite your lip and press your back against the wall. 

“Thought about you every minute I was gone. Every fucking minute.” 

“Nicholas…” 

“LA was crawling with people, and the only person I wanted was you.”

“I love you,” Joe whispers. You barely catch it through the sturdy walls. 

“I love you, too.” 

The conversation stops for a moment, and there’s just the sound of loud breath and bodies moving rhythmically. Then Joe asks, “Hey, can you do that thing with-” His words abruptly cut off with a strangled moan.

“You mean _that_ thing?” Nick asks, and you can practically see the smug, satisfied smile on his face.

“Yeah,” Joe breathes, “yeah. Nick, I’m gonna come.” 

Nick lets him, and you wonder if they’re not actually fucking. You have no idea _what_ ’s going on behind that door. It could be anything. You sneak back down the hall to your room, your work downstairs forgotten.

Elvis slowly lifts his head when you open the door, looking at you through bleary eyes. You hurry to get under the covers and switch the light off. You stare at the ceiling for what feels like forever, but the knock at the door from the seemingly all-knowing Nick never comes. 

You find sleep.


	11. The Edge

Unfortunately, the sleep doesn’t last long, because at four AM, you’re wide awake. You’ve given up on lying in the dark and staring up at the ceiling, so your lamp is on, and you’re reading one of the books you borrowed from Nick’s sprawling library. This one is called Helter Skelter; it’s all about the Manson Family murders. A bit of a chilling choice for some middle-of-the-night reading, but the beginning was so good that you’ve been dying to read some more of it (no pun intended).

The house is overwhelmingly quiet. The air conditioner is off, there are no cars driving around, and Joe isn’t downstairs with the TV blaring. You munch on some Goldfish as your eyes scan the lines, and your chewing sounds loud enough to wake everyone on the street. You swallow and are just turning the page to the next chapter, which details one of the grisly murder scenes, when there’s a sudden knock at your door. 

You jump and almost scream, but you catch yourself in time. You take a breath, and it seems that you took too long to respond, because the door is cracking open, and a pair of crinkled brown eyes peek inside. 

It’s too quiet to talk, so you give Nick a wave. 

“Did I scare you?” he whispers. 

“A little,” you admit.

“I'm sorry. Can I come in?” 

You’re not wearing a bra under your t-shirt, but he literally watched you fuck his brother twelve hours ago, so it doesn’t seem like that big of a deal right now. “Yeah.”

He closes the door behind himself and walks over to where Elvis is tiredly wagging his tail. He crouches down and croons, “Hey, buddy.” 

“Are you going somewhere?” you ask. He’s fully dressed, from his baseball cap to his sneakers. 

“Yeah. I wanted to see if you wanted to come with me.”

“Come with you where?”

“A… place.” 

“A place,” you echo.

“Yeah.”

“It’s the middle of the night,” you remind him. 

“I know.”

There’s something about Nick; he’s this enigma. He’s standing in your room at four in the morning wearing his incognito clothes and inviting you to this mysterious place he’s going. He could be planning to fucking murder you. But something in you attributes that paranoia to the book, and you push your wariness aside and agree to go with him.

“Let me get dressed,” you say, and he sits on the bed with Elvis and watches you slide out from under the covers with nothing but the big t-shirt and a pair of blue underwear on.

“Can I have some of this?” he asks, holding up your carton of goldfish. 

“Sure.”

Almost immediately, you hear him start to crunch on the snack. You rifle through your drawers. “What should I wear?” 

“Whatever you want,” he answers. And then he says, “ _No_ , Elvis.” 

Elvis whines sadly.

“He likes them,” you say with a small smile.

“Likes what?” 

“Goldfish.” 

“You gave him Goldfish?” Nick asks.

“He’s too cute to resist!” 

“Oh my god,” Nick mutters, shaking his head. He looks at Elvis. “Are you trying to steal my girl?” 

You about trip over your own feet as the words reach your ears, but you manage to play it cool and wiggle into your favorite pair of jeans. 

“You’ll want tennis shoes,” Nick says, and you nod, making a mental note to grab your blue Nikes out of the closet.

Within a few minutes, you’re dressed and your hair is in two messy French braids. He walks you to the car and opens the door for you, and if it were safe to say you were smitten, you would have. _But he’s your boss,_ you remind yourself. _You work for him. You’re the help._

He turns on some quiet music and backs carefully out of the garage. You stare, mesmerized, at his fancy interior. The dashboard alone is fucking – god. What kind of money…

The whisper of the car motor in the silent neighborhood seems just as loud as the Goldfish had in your room. Nick drives up to the gate, and the security guard doesn’t seem surprised to see him. “No security, Mr. Jonas?” 

“No, thanks.”

“Alright. Have a nice time.” The man tips his hat at you, traditional as fuck, and you love it. There’s something that’s still captivating about southern gentlemen even though you’ve lived in Texas for your entire life.

The two of you drive without talking much; you’ve never seen Dallas at four A.M. One or two o’clock, sure – you weren’t one to skip out on Harry Potter midnight premieres – but not four. Never four. Every traffic light you encounter is steadily glowing green. The roads are dead, the businesses all look as though they’ve been shut down, and there isn’t a single soul in sight. But then Nick is making a right turn, and a brightly lit building comes into view.

 _BuzzBrews Kitchen,_  the sign on the front reads, and Nick parks a few feet away from the front steps. You can sense that he’s hurrying a little as he gets out to make sure he can get to your car door before you open it, so you sit patiently and pretend to fiddle with your phone.

“Thanks,” you say as he opens the door for you, and he just smiles and offers you his arm. You take it, wrapping your fingers carefully around his bicep. The butterflies you felt for Joe are back in your tummy, this time for Nick. You wish the moments like this could last a lifetime.

Nick escorts you up to the building and holds the door open for you. You take a few steps inside and then pause, waiting for him to catch up to you but also taking in the restaurant’s décor.

“Whoa.”

“Yeah. It’s known for pop art,” he says (as though you couldn't guess). He raises a hand to a guy behind the bar, who promptly waves back in acknowledgement.

“Hey, Nick.”

“Hey, man.” He looks at you. “(Y/N), this is Paul. Paul, this is (Y/N).” The man starts to speak, but Nick holds up a finger. “I haven’t told her where we’re going yet.”

“Ah,” the guy says with a conspiratorial smile. “A surprise?”

“Yeah,” Nick admits. 

You hate that you’re not in on the secret, but it’s undeniably cute that Nick’s going to a bit of trouble to keep you from finding out where you’re going. And if this Paul guy from the diner knows where you’re headed, it must not be a murder thing, which is a little more comforting than you'd like to admit. 

“So!” the guy chirps, clapping his hands and rubbing them together. The place is empty, so it’s not like there’s anybody to disturb. “The usual?” he asks Nick. 

“For me. (Y/N), what do you want?”

“Oh, um,” you say. You’d been focused on the conversation, so you hadn’t thought to look at the menu hanging on the wall.

But then the guy starts listing off all sorts of coffees and teas that he can make, and when he says ‘mocha latte,’ you stop him and request one of those.

“Sweet tooth, huh?” Nick asks.

You shrug sheepishly.

Nick pays for the coffees, and Paul shows you the happy face he’s drawn in the foam before he snaps the lid on. In the car, Nick insists on taking a picture of you with your smiling coffee. 

And then you’re off. Next stop: Nick’s secret destination.


	12. I'm Just

Nick pulls slowly into a parking lot where there are several cars parked. You’re surprised; why the hell are all these people out at four thirty in the morning? 

You ask as much, and Nick smiles sideways at you and says, “You’ll see.” 

This time you’re not shy about waiting for Nick to come around the front of the car and open your door for you. You both take your coffees, and his fingers wrap around yours as your feet slide to the ground. You blush a little when he keeps hold of your hand as you start walking. You lean into his shoulder, and he kisses your hair. You have to squeeze your eyes shut to keep from squeaking. 

You’re walking towards a building that looks like a big, white warehouse. He holds that door open for you, too, and you follow him to a down escalator. He takes your hand again, but this time you pull it away.

“What?” he asks, looking a little upset.

“I… won’t people take pictures of us? I don’t want to-”

Nick chuckles. “No. They don’t care that I come here.”

You tilt your head.

“Most of them haven’t realized who I am anyway.” 

You wonder how the hell that’s possible. You step onto the escalator and begin the descent into the bottom floor of the building. You gasp a little as you realize why Nick is here. 

Spread from wall to wall and every space in between are thousands and thousands of flowers. The room is rich with colors with a few smatterings of white here and there. People are buzzing all over the place, so bright and alive in the otherwise quiet night. 

“This is where you get the flowers,” you state, even though it’s obvious.

Nick nods. “Want to help me pick some?”

You want to say yes, but instead you say, “I don’t really know anything about flowers.”

Nick shrugs and admits, “Neither do I.” As you get off the escalator, he shoots you a silly smile, and you about melt into the floor. He squeezes your fingers and leads you off on what must be his usual path through the warehouse. 

“Nick,” someone greets, and you and Nick both turn to see a man with a pair of beat-up jeans and an army green Life Is Good t-shirt with a flower pot on it.

“Chad, hey,” Nick replies, and the men shake hands. 

“Who’s this?” Chad asks, curiously eyeing the way Nick is gripping your fingers. 

Nick introduces you, and you smile and let go of Nick so you can shake Chad’s hand.

“I got some more of that baby’s breath you liked so much if you wanna check it out,” Chad tells Nick.

Nick immediately shifts into business mode, asking about prices and quantities, and they start talking specifics in terms you don’t really understand. It becomes clear that Nick knows a whole lot more about floristry than he let on a moment ago. 

Nick leaves the cart with two armfuls of flowers, and he shifts one into your arms so he can ‘run and grab a cart.’ It’s not as easy as it sounds; you’ve got his coffee _and_ yours, and now a giant, two foot tall stack of flowers blocking your view. 

Nick rushes back though, and he quickly grabs the flowers and lays them gently across the cart. He takes his coffee back and kisses you on the lips. “Thanks.”

You know your eyes are blown wide in surprise, but you can’t help it. He chuckles at your expression and affectionately swipes his thumb over your bottom lip. “You’re so cute,” he says again. 

Some flowers behind you catch his eye, and his entire face lights up. You swear you’ve never liked him more. You… No. No, you’re not ready to go that far. It’s too fast. It's only been a week! _It's only been a week!_  

You repeat that to yourself over and over as you follow him through the flower market, sometimes showing him things you think are pretty. He buys pretty much everything he likes even the slightest bit, and then he wheels the strange cart to the cart escalator. 

Checkout is quick, and the woman there greets Nick by name. She smiles at you politely and gives you each several bags of bright flowers. 

“Lots of pink this time,” she comments. 

“Yeah, I’m just in that sort of mood, I guess,” Nick replies kindly. 

“I’m sure it will be lovely. I’ll see you soon!” 

“Bye!” 

You love how sweet he is to everyone. Joe seems afraid of the public, but not Nick. At least not for now. You understand both sides, and you wonder why the brothers are so different in their reactions. Maybe it’s how they always were. You take a sip of your cooled-off latte.

“So, I wanted to run something by you,” Nick says as the two of you walk side by side to the car.

There still isn’t even a hint of the sunrise yet. A glance at your phone tells you it’s just past 5 am. “Okay.” 

“Joe’s gonna have the band over in a couple days. Is that cool with you?” 

“Yeah, that’s fine.” You wonder why he’s asking you, although you figure you’ll probably have to clean a lot. 

“I just wanted to make sure, because Joe has literally made a list of food he wants you to make.” 

You chuckle. “I’m not surprised.”

“You’re the best cook we’ve ever had,” Nick tells you.

You laugh again, this time sarcastic. “Okay.”

“I’m serious.” He unlocks the car, and it beeps and flashes. It seems so loud and bright in the darkness. He carefully loads the trunk with flowers, not letting you help as much as he probably should have. Such a gentleman. 

He opens your car door for you again, and when he comes around and gets into his side, he continues right where he left off. “Anyway, my brother Kevin’s probably going to come, too. I just wanted to make sure you were comfortable with that, cause we can always make other arrangements-”

“No, it’s fine,” you assure him. “It sounds fun.” 'My brother Kevin.' He's too funny.

Nick grins. “Okay. Cool.”

The drive home feels faster than the drive out did. There are more people out and about now, but the streets are still mostly deserted. You yawn widely.

You’re half asleep when Nick pulls up to the front gate. The guy waves him through without much of a check, but the car’s slowness in the neighborhood is enough to wake you back up. 

Nick is holding your hand in his lap – you’re not quite sure when that happened, but it’s probably the sweetest thing that’s ever happened to you. He helps you out of the car and wraps a warm arm around your shoulders as he walks you up the stairs to your room. He makes sure you get back into the pajamas you were wearing, and he gently undoes your braids, leaving your hair in loose waves. When he’s satisfied, he sits you down on the edge of the bed and pulls you into his chest for a hug. 

You lean in. Your eyes are blinking closed; he’s so quiet and gentle and warm, and you’re exhausted, even after the coffee. ( _It was decaf_ , Nick will tell you in the morning.) He rubs your back with one hand while lifting the Manson murder book with the other. He’s depositing it on the nightstand and being careful not to lose your place when you make an involuntary sleepy sound.

“Shh, okay,” Nick whispers, helping you under the covers. He leans down to smooth a hand over your hair and presses a soft kiss to your forehead. “See you tomorrow.” He kisses you again and turns off your lamp. He heads out but pauses at the door. “Sweet dreams.” The door slowly clicks shut. 

You fall asleep a few moments later with a smile on your face.


	13. Breathless

When you wake again, sun is streaming through your windows. You bolt up in bed and grab your phone to check the time. It’s nearly eleven in the morning!

You rush downstairs and see Joe sitting on his couch, this time with a laptop. He’s cute as fuck with a pair of black Ray Bans at the bridge of his nose, and he appears to be on a Skype call. He tugs a headphone out of his ear to greet you. “Hey.” 

“Oh my god, Joe, I’m _so_ sorry. My alarm didn’t go off.” You’re breathless as fuck, but you can’t help it – you’re so embarrassed. This isn’t like you at all. 

“Who is that?” you hear through the tinny earbud.

"Yeah, who are you talking to?"

"Was that a girl?"

“Guys, shut up," Joe says dismissively, ignoring the rush of questions. You've grown so used to the Nick-and-Joe dynamic of the household that you've forgotten that Joe is such a good leader - and that he's clearly the one in charge of things when it comes to DNCE. "Shut up. Hold on, I’m muting myself.” 

There’s a brief protest when Joe clicks the track pad, but then Joe mutes their end as well. He looks over at you. “I heard you went on an adventure with Nicholas last night. Or – this morning, I guess.” 

You nod. “I know, but that’s no excuse. I was planning to be up at the right time anyway!” You tap your fingers anxiously against the edge of the oversized t-shirt. “Do you want me to make you some food? Let me just get changed, and-” 

Joe chuckles. “No, that’s okay. And it wasn’t your fault; Nick turned your alarm off when you guys got home.” 

Your eyebrows draw together. “Really?” 

“Really.” 

You pause, not sure what to do with that information. “Oh.” 

“Yeah. He said he wanted you to get some sleep. Said he took you with him to the market cause you were already awake in the middle of the night?” 

You nod in confirmation. 

Joe shrugs. “See, no big deal. And this may come as a surprise, but I _do_ actually know how to pour a bowl of cereal all by myself.” He holds up a red apple. “And get a snack, too.” 

"I'll alert the media," you tease.

"Oh, please don't."

You smile at his joke and can’t help but go over to ruffle his hair. You press a kiss to the top of his head, and Joe manages to tilt the laptop screen down just in time to shield you from his band’s view. 

“Where’s your boy?” you ask.

“Enjay’s, probably. Sneaking around the back like a goddamn raccoon.” He smiles to himself at the image.

Even with the trip to the flower market that morning, you’d almost forgotten about Nick’s flower shop on Main. “Oh, okay. Um, is there anything you need me to do?” 

He gives you a strange look.

“What?” you ask.

“It’s Saturday.” 

You nod at him. “I know...”

He looks at you for another moment, but when you don't speak, he explains, “You get the weekends off.”

“ _Oh._ ”

“I'm sure he would have turned your alarm off anyway, but yeah, Saturday and Sunday are _your_ days. You don’t have to do anything for us.”

You try not to bite your lip. “Is it okay if I want to? I saw you guys had some laundry…”

Joe shakes his head fondly. “If you wanna do it, go for it. But just know you don’t have to.” 

You stroke the top of his head, and he hopefully tips his chin up as if he's asking for a kiss. You can’t help but lean down to give him one. You can taste the faint tang of apple juice on his lips. 

You move slowly when you pull away. Joe seems satisfied and turns back to his computer, so you walk back up the stairs to get started on the boys’ laundry. As Joe lifts his headphone back to his ear, he pauses and calls your name.

You stop halfway up and look at him. 

His eyes rake over your bare legs. “You look really pretty like that.” 

You give him a small, embarrassed smile and point to his computer. “Your friends are waiting.” 

You can feel him watching you all the way up the rest of the flight, and you’re glad you can stave the blush away until you’re safely out of view. 

Elvis must hear you coming, because he’s at your heels within moments of you reaching the upper floor. You rub him behind the ears in greeting, and he trots after you into Nick and Joe’s room. He’s a bit of a problem as you’re trying to sort lights from darks. He sticks his wet nose in all the t-shirt sleeves, and then happily picks up a pair of Nick’s boxer briefs between his teeth. You laugh and snatch them away. “No!” you giggle. 

Despite Elvis, you do manage to get the laundry separated into two piles. Since you can’t wash both at the same time, you pack the lights into the hamper and balance it against your hip, taking extra care as you walk down the stairs without the banister. 

Once the first load is in and running (with Joe safely Skyping on the couch and not dumping in the whole container of detergent), you head back upstairs and decide to take a shower. Your hair is wild and messy after you slept on it in waves, and you still feel a little strange after all that rest.

You move languidly in the water, taking your time lathering your hair, rinsing it out, and letting your conditioner work its magic for a while as you enjoy standing under the stream. You feel like a millionaire. 

A few minutes later, as you’re rinsing the last of the creamy soap off of your body, the bathroom door opens. You jump a little, and your cheeks immediately grow warm from the self-consciousness. No one’s seen you non-sexually naked in quite a while. 

Nick’s pulling off his shirt, though, and heading right for you, and if that isn’t distracting, you have no idea what the hell is.

“Dreamt about you last night,” he says, coming closer and undoing his belt. His voice sounds a little deeper than usual. “Kissing you… touching you… _fucking_ you…”

You swallow, eyes widening at his words. 

He steps out of his jeans, leaves them in a rumpled heap on the floor, and motions to the shower. “Can I come in?”


	14. I Never Thought

You hesitate out of surprise but nod.

He steps in behind you and wraps his arms around your waist, tilting his head so he can press gentle kisses down your jaw. Your hand locks onto one of his arms, and you can feel the cords under his skin flexing and moving as his hands slide down your stomach. He dips a finger between your legs and you jump, almost laugh. 

“Nick,” you gasp. You didn’t see this coming at all, and it’s obvious from your voice. You can hear it in echoes bouncing off the tile. 

“Let me,” he murmurs. “I know you want me to. I’ve seen you looking at me.”

You pause then, your breath catching as you look over your shoulder into his eyes. Those beautiful, beautiful brown eyes. They look so much darker now with his pupils so wide. You turn in his grasp and press a hungry kiss to his lips.

He seems pleased, and his hand finds its way easily into your wet hair, threading thick sections of it between his fingers and pulling. A soft sound comes from your throat, and Nick smiles against your mouth. He runs his fingers down your sides, and you kiss him, kiss him, kiss him. You can’t stop. His lips feel so good, and he’s making your stomach jump and twist in entirely new ways. Joe is sweet and kind. Nick is dangerous.

His fingers are everywhere then, back up your sides and tracing your neck, pulling you impossibly closer as he keeps kissing you. You can’t tell if your skin is hot from the shower or from him touching you. 

His thumb comes between your mouth and his, and then it’s dragging your bottom lip down. You can feel how wide your eyes are and how gone your breath is, and Nick is looking right at you. He’s never looked so beautiful. He’s thinking the same thing about you.

You can already feel your body responding to his touch, but things grow even more intense when he gently wraps his hands around your breasts, feeling and almost massaging. Your breath echoes loudly against the corner of the shower.

He turns you back around in his arms, and you know what he’s going to do before he does it. You brace one hand against the wall and keep the other wrapped around his forearm. His thighs fall into place right behind yours as he pushes into you. You can’t help but lean back into him a bit, loving the fullness inside of you. So good… 

He fucks differently than Joe, too. Nick is calculated. He goes fast until he knows for both your sakes that he needs to slow down. He doesn’t want to end things too quickly. It’s slow from there, but still rhythmic and intentional. His mouth finds your shoulder, and his teeth gently bite down. The pain sends a surge straight down between your legs and you let out a breathy moan. He bites again, harder.

You wish you could touch him, but there’s something you like about not being able to. It’s different than anything you’ve ever had.

He moves your hair off of your neck and over the front of your shoulder so that all your skin is available to him. He cups a hand over your throat. His fingers are firm, but not so firm as to cut off your air supply - just strong enough to limit it a bit.

You surrender to Nick completely then, pushing off of the wall and just holding onto him as best you can, letting him support your weight, letting him do all the work. He bites at you again, softly this time. You start to let out involuntary whimpers, letting him know that you’re close to orgasming, and he picks up the pace just enough. 

He’s murmuring in your ear, and you’re gasping his name, and when you come, you let out a keening sound that you’ve never heard yourself make before. He keeps going for a moment, and then you feel him sputter and come inside of you.

He rests his head on the back of your shoulder, breathing a little hard. “Sorry,” he mumbles into your skin. “I know you just showered.”

You stretch on your toes and wiggle a little bit so that his dick slides out. You turn around and kiss him. “Doesn’t matter,” you tell him.

He catches your hand with his own and lifts it a bit, your fingers aligning with his. Then he moves his hand slightly, and your fingers slide into the gaps. He leans in and kisses you again.

His eyes roam around for a moment before landing on a bottle of soap on the shower floor. “Here,” he says quietly. And then he squeezes a dollop of the creamy soap you’d just finished with into his hand and starts rubbing it on your skin. 

You can’t help it; you lean into his chest, letting his strong hands massage the soap onto your body.

When the two of you finally get out, your hands are all wrinkly. Nick has used your soap, too, and borrowed your shampoo as well, and he wonders aloud whether Joe will notice the new smells on him.

“I bet he will,” you say. You hand Nick a towel from under the sink, and he follows you into your room as you dry off and prepare to get dressed. You pick out some clothes and put them on. When you turn back around a few minutes later, Nick has his towel tied loosely around his waist and is lying back on your bed with his eyes shut. You walk up to him and smooth a hand over his forehead. 

“Mm,” he grumbles. 

“You gonna take a nap?” you ask. You’ve just woken up, so it’s not like you could fall back asleep with him. 

He nods, not opening his eyes.  

You smile, a little bit of a laugh coming out. Boys and sex. “Alright. I have plans to make with Joe anyway.” You lean down to kiss his temple, and then you duck out the door.


	15. That I'd

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here, have a cutesy chapter for Valentine's Day (AKA I'm aro/ace and suck at writing sex, so here's some Other Stuff)

You wave at Joe as you come down the stairs. He’s off the laptop now but has his cell phone pressed to his ear. He waves back, pen in hand, and quickly returns his attention to the paper to jot something else down. 

He’s writing furiously, pausing only to shove his Ray Bans back up the bridge of his nose. You take a seat on the couch next to him. You can hardly decipher his scratches of shorthand, but it seems to be a sort of schedule - lots of dates and times and radio stations you’ve never heard of. Why don’t his people just email him a list? You make a mental note to type up what’s on the sheet (if you can make heads or tails of that handwriting) and put a copy on the refrigerator. 

After another minute or so, he hangs up the phone and lets the pen clatter onto the coffee table. “Fuck,” he sighs. 

He leans into you, and you wrap an arm around him without thinking about it. “You want some food?” you inquire. You don’t notice that you’re rubbing his shoulder. 

“Yeah.” 

“Like what?”

He thinks for a moment. “Did you ever find an angel food cake recipe?” 

“No, but I can start looking if you like.”

He nods. “Okay. But not right now, though. Can you make me some of your hot chocolate? Nick won’t stop talking about it, and I want to try it.”

“Of course.” 

You let go of him and stand up, and he follows you to the kitchen. 

“Have you thought any more about what you want me to make when everybody comes over?” 

“Not really, but I don’t think it matters. Every single thing you’ve made has been delicious.”

You hide your smile by turning away. “I’m glad.” 

“What’s easy to make for a lot of people?” he asks, leaning on the island. 

You think for a moment. “Lasagna…”

“Yes.” 

You chuckle. “I was going to give you a list,” you tell him. 

“No, I want lasagna,” he replies decisively. And then he tacks on, “Please.”

“Alright. Is meat okay?”

“Meat is _great_.”

You nod and grab the pencil and notepad you’ve stashed in the cabinet by the stove and make a short list of things you’ll need. Then you start getting out the ingredients for the hot chocolate. “You know, you just had cereal and an apple,” you say to Joe. “Are you sure you want hot chocolate, too?” 

“Yep.” 

You snort. “Your stomach must be a bottomless pit, you know that?” 

He smiles proudly. “Uh-huh.”

You laugh for real then. “Joseph Jonas,” you mutter, shaking your head slowly.

He comes up next to you and happily kisses you. 

You break away. “Is this cheating?” you ask him.

He takes a step back, looking confused and a little hurt. “What?” 

“Cheating. Is this cheating, what you and me are doing? I mean, Nick just came upstairs and fucked me in the shower. And now you’re down here kissing me. Is this cheating?” 

Joe turned his head to the side, biting his lip to conceal a smile – at the fact that you and Nick just had shower sex, no doubt. “No, (Y/N), it’s not cheating.” 

“Really? Because you’re married, but you’re kissing me, and Nick’s married, and he's taking me to diners and flower markets in the middle of the night, and I’ve had sex with both of you, but I’m-“ You swallow and say it. “I’m the help.” 

He blinks, and the surprise is written across his face. “(Y/N)…”

“No, it’s true. I don’t know where the lines are here. You guys just started doing this, and it’s _more_ than fine with me, you know that, but… not if it’s going to mess things up with you and Nick. I don’t want to be a problem. What you two have… I’ve never seen anything like it before, and I can’t be the one that gets in the way. I like you two way too much for that.” 

Joe’s shaking his head before you’ve even finished. “You’re not messing anything up. I swear. Not even close.”

You look at him, sure your disbelief is clear.

“We’re gonna talk about this when Nick wakes up. All three of us. Okay?”

You nod carefully.

“We probably should have done that at the beginning, anyway. But Nick will know what to do. Come here,” he says, and he holds his arms open for a hug.

You stare at him for a moment, but it’s too tempting; you haven’t had a hug in nearly a week. Before that, you don’t even know how long it’s been. It’s not hard to step into his embrace.

His arms fold around you, and you melt into his chest. He’s warm, and he smells like laundry detergent and his shampoo and that apple he had for snack, and his grip is so tight on you. You feel… safe. You haven’t felt safe in ages.

You let your hands wrap around him and cling to him, and he holds you closer. “You’re not just the help,” he says quietly. “You’re…” He stops and changes the direction of the sentence. “That’s never what you were, not even in the beginning. You were always more than that, so much more than that. Remember I told you in your car, we picked you because you were special.”

You look at your feet as he lets go of you, but then his hands are resting on your shoulders, and you can feel him trying to catch your gaze.

“Please look at me,” he begs softly. 

You tentatively raise your eyes to meet his own. 

“You have no idea how much you’ve changed our lives. Me and Nick… we weren’t this happy before you came here.”

Disappointed in his answer, you cast your eyes away. He must be lying.

But then he pleads, “I _swear_ ,” and he sounds so sincere that your eyes find their way back to his. “We needed you so bad, and we didn’t even know it. You’re a lifesaver. Seriously. And it’s not just the stupid housework. It’s everything. You make us laugh, and you love that damn dog as much as Nick does. You know what we need before we do. You dragged me to Taco Bell like I was a person, a _real person_ , and you dealt with that girl at the front door, and you let me go through all your CDs and tease you and… Shit, (Y/N). In my entire life, I’ve never met anyone that's as easy as you." He looks flustered. "That's not- that's not what I meant. Easy to be with, not easy. Just - I haven't met anybody like you. What I'm trying to say is that you just… you fit.” 

You can’t help the shy smile that appears on your lips. “Really?” you ask softly. 

He nods. “Really.”


	16. Catch

Nick only sleeps for about an hour, and Joe calls him over as soon as he comes downstairs. “We need to talk,” he says. You can see the worried look on Nick’s face, but Joe quickly backtracks to calm him. “That was – that was a bad way to phrase it. I mean. We _do_ need to talk, but it’s not – it’s-”

Nick glances from Joe to you and then back to Joe. “What’s going on?” He still looks cautious. 

“(Y/N) and I were talking this morning, and I think we need to… figure some things out.”

You nod. 

Nick’s eyebrows crease in worry. “Okay…”

“Nothing’s wrong,” you say. “I just want to know, um. Where the lines are, I guess.” 

Nick understands then, and he motions you and Joe away from the kitchen counter and over to the table. The three of you sit down. Nick is sure to sit beside you so he’s not talking at you from across the room but by your side.

“We’ve never done this before,” Nick admits to you, resting his clasped hands on the wood. “I mean, we’ve always had people in the house, but they’ve mostly been in and out or living in guest houses. Of course, you live in a guest wing, which is kind of the same thing. But that isn’t important. Where was I going with this?” 

Joe’s usually the rambling type, but this time it’s Nick who can’t stop the words spilling out of his mouth. It would be cute if you weren’t so uncomfortable. 

“I can’t speak for Joe,” Nick continues,” but I really like having you here. If you aren’t comfortable with what we’ve been doing, that’s fine. We can stop right now. You-”

“No, it’s fine. That part’s fine. I just don’t know…”

“Don’t know what?” 

You purse your lips, not wanting to ask the question. You swallow and ask it anyway. “I mean, you didn’t hire me for sex, did you?”

Joe goes pale, and Nick breathes in sharply. “No,” they both answer at exactly the same time.

Clearly the question has upset both of them, but the answer has comforted you. You’d been trying not to wonder about that, but the kissing and touching had started to become so routine that you just wondered… 

You nod. “Okay.”

“No, never,” Joe says again, his voice completely serious. “ _Never._ ”

“We honestly had no idea this was going to happen,” Nick adds. “We just needed some help with the house and managing time and stuff.”

You nod. “Okay.” 

“If you want us to stop, we really can," he repeats. "That’s totally fine.” 

“That’s not what I wanted to talk to you about. It’s more like… what are the terms here? Like, we don’t have to write it up or anything, but I just want to know if you two have really talked about it. Because I don’t know what’s going on with you two. And with you two and me.” 

“Well, in the beginning it was just the Skype thing,” Joe says. “Nick said to kiss you, and we recorded what we did upstairs. That night, he called, and he said I could do whatever as long as you were okay with it, too.”

“And then I came home, and we talked, and we, um. Well. We both really like you.” 

“I like you guys, too.” 

“No, like,” Joe starts, but Nick interrupts. 

“We’re _interested_ in you,” he intones.

You nod for a second, processing. “Oh.” Then you point out, “But you’re married. To each other.”

“And we’ve never encountered a situation where we feel real… attraction, I guess, to someone other than each other,” Nick confesses. “This is new for us. It’s new for you, too, right?” 

“What, having sex with two people at the same time?”

Joe looks a little hurt, and Nick stumbles for a moment but seems to go with it. “Yeah.” 

You look at Joe for a moment, and before you can stop yourself, the question comes out. “Wait. You actually _like_ me? You’re interested as in, interested in a _relationship_ with me?” 

Joe nods. Out of the corner of your eye, you see Nick nodding as well. You turn toward him. “ _Both_ of you?” you ask incredulously. 

“Is that so crazy?” Nick asks, a small smile on his lips.

 _“Yes.”_  

Nick laughs then.

You sit back in your chair, genuinely shocked. “So… my main thing was that both of you are okay with this, and no one considers this to be cheating.” 

“Right.” 

“Even when it’s just one of you with me at a time.” 

“Right.” 

“And you two aren’t mad at each other about this?” 

“Nope,” Nick replies, giving the P on the end a little pop. 

“So… okay.” You look from Nick to Joe, and a shy smile spreads across your face. “Okay.” You gently clear your throat and look at Nick, who’s grinning almost smugly. "What?" you ask.

“I know we just had sex, but, uh. Do you two wanna take this upstairs?"

It’s Joe that answers him with a devilish grin. “Hell yeah.”


	17. This

Nick leads the way up the stairs, peeling his shirt off as he goes. You take a shaky breath in as you watch the way the muscles in his shoulders move under his skin. 

You follow him into the bedroom, and he yanks the curtains shut while Joe comes up behind you and wraps his arms around you, his hand slipping first under your shirt and then under your bra. Nick comes around the front, tenderly cupping his hands around your jaw like he always does and kissing your lips like it’s his last night on earth. You can feel Joe’s mouth on your neck, and Nick’s tongue is in your mouth, and your knees start to go weak. 

“Clothes – off,” you gasp, and Joe grabs the hem of your shirt and pulls it up around your stomach. Nick breaks away from your lips and helps Joe get it off. Your bra comes off next, and Joe tugs the rest of your clothes down so you can kick them off. Nick pushes his own shorts down – you see that he’s already more than half hard. Still -

“You first,” Nick says to Joe, turning you around between the two of them.

You give a soft moan at the loss of Nick’s naked skin against your own, and you shove Joe’s shirt up just in time for him to tug it over his head and throw it onto the floor. His hands find you again immediately, and he kisses your neck, your collarbone, and then, oh god, he’s _getting on his knees_ and his mouth finds your breasts, your hips… It’s like he’s worshipping you. 

You can see Nick out of the corner of your eye jerking his cock as Joe kisses you.

Joe runs his fingers along the front of your thighs and looks up at you, eyes big and innocent, pupils blown wide. Your breath catches and your hand strokes his cheek. Then you guide Joe back up to his feet and circle your arms around his neck, his mouth finding yours. 

“Oh my god,” Nick whispers. You haven’t even done anything yet, but there’s so much sexual energy in the room that it feels like you could come from just one touch.

Joe walks you back to the bed and lays you down. Nick gets on his knees next to his brother, both of them leaning over you. You’re a little shy, all exposed like this, but the hungry way they’re looking at you tells you there’s nothing to be ashamed of. 

You’re so wet that when Joe slides his dick around on the outside of you, he smiles. He slips inside and you exhale audibly, your eyes falling closed. You hadn't realized you needed him so badly. You can feel Nick run an approving hand over your hair, and Joe starts moving inside you without prompting. He’s fucking you, and your knees come up around his hips and squeeze, keeping him there. The bed is moving underneath you in time to match Joe’s body.

One of Nick’s hands is still on his dick, and the other is on the small of Joe’s back. He’s kissing on Joe’s shoulder like he’d done with you earlier in the shower, and a glance a little further down tells you that he’s still pumping his cock. You would never have guessed Nick would be a voyeur, but damn, he sure loves watching you and Joe.

Nick takes his hand off of Joe (and himself) and comes toward you. He moves so he’s behind you, and he leans down and kisses your lips upside-down. He sits up a little, stretching over you, and starts playing with your nipples. You arch into his touch and stare up at his rippling abdomen for a moment before your eyes fall shut again. 

Joe feels amazing inside you, his hands so warm around your waist. You relax into the bed and just let your body enjoy this. Joe is groaning quietly at the sensations, and it’s turning you on more. And then Nick gets hornier, which makes Joe fuck you harder, and… it’s all a cycle, and you don’t know what’s going to happen at the end. 

Pretty soon, Joe’s gasping, and you know you’re breathing just as hard. He kisses your lips and spends the last of his energy fucking you into that place where you can only hold onto him and whimper.

When it’s over, he slowly pulls out of you and kisses your lips again. “So good,” he murmurs, and you get even warmer all over, that familiar blush traveling across your cheeks. 

Nick only gives you a moment before he’s stealing your attention away from his husband. “My turn,” he says. “You ready?”

“I don’t know,” you say, biting your lip. 

“Still too sensitive?” Nick asks. 

You nod. 

“That’s okay,” he says. “I’ll be gentle.” 

Your stomach seizes up at his words. Or maybe it’s something else fluttering inside you. You’re still wet from Joe, but Nick doesn’t seem to care; before you can say a word, his mouth is between your legs, tracing a line from your opening up to your clit. You grab onto the sheets at the feeling, but it’s not enough. You grab onto his head instead, and you can feel his warm breath against your thigh as he chuckles. 

“Good?” he asks.

“Yes,” you whisper, running your hands over his buzzcut. “Yes, yes, yes, yes… more.” 

Joe lays languidly by your side and watches, stroking his fingers over your arm as his brother works his magic. You’re moaning and whining and begging by the time Nick is through, and when he slides two fingers inside of you, you almost scream. 

“Shh,” Joe whispers, coming up from his spot to kiss your cheek. “It’s okay. It’s okay.” 

“I – I,” you stutter, but you’re cut off by another one of your own moans. “Nick…” 

“Shh,” Joe hushes again, but then he says quietly, “Nick, don’t stop. She’s gonna come.” 

Nick gives a barely audible hum against your clit, and that’s it. You’re up, up, up, and you crash over the edge, letting the feeling rock through your body. You’re still coming when Nick pulls his mouth away and replaces it with his dick. He teases you for a few moments, tickling your outsides with the head of his cock before he slides it into the place his brother had just been.

Just like last time, you notice a distinct difference in the way the two boys do their thing, but it’s good. You like it both ways. Maybe you _need_ it both ways. Joe does what his body feels like doing, but when Nick fucks you, it’s like he’s got a method. He’s all rolling hips and breathy pants and rough kisses.

Joe gets on his knees next to your ribs and leans in front of Nick to kiss him. You watch them kiss, and you can't help but reach up to touch Joe. You miss his body, so you trace your fingers down his side. His hand locks onto yours. Nick is still moving rhythmically inside you and still kissing Joe, and your head tips back of its own accord. This is too hot, too fucking hot. A few moments later, there's a hand on your cheek that makes you look up, and it’s Joe with those big, brown, doe eyes again, looking as innocent as a child. He blinks through dark eyelashes, silently asking permission to kiss you. You part your lips in lieu of a reply. He lies down on his stomach, props himself up on his arms, and gives you a stream of slow, steamy kisses, as though he plans to do this forever. 

Nick takes his time fucking you, and the way he’s looking at you makes it seem like he enjoys watching his partners orgasm more than he does actually orgasming himself. There’s something beyond sexy about that, that he’s getting off on… well, on you. 

You come a third time right after Nick finishes, and your body is shaky and spent. You stay still as Nick pulls out of you and drops to the bed next to you. You can’t help but curl into his chest, and Joe slides forward and wraps his arm around your back. He’s half hard, but it doesn’t seem that he has any intention of moving things further. Nick can’t go again for at least a few minutes, and you’re exhausted. You’re not sure you’ve ever come three times in a row, and you don’t think you can try four. At least, not today. 

You and Nick are both still breathing hard on the mattress when Nick draws the soft, white sheets over all three of your waists. He gives you a slow kiss and then motions Joe toward him for one, too. You feel so warm. So taken care of. The boys are handsome and gorgeous and sexy and kind, and they treat you so well. You can’t believe you landed this job, and you can’t believe what it’s turned into. It’s beyond a dream come true. 


	18. Lovebug

You decide to treat yourself to a break the next afternoon. There’s going to be a storm of work soon, what with the band and Kevin coming over and all the cooking and setting up that needs to be done before then. So before all that chaos starts, you let yourself settle in the library with a mug of hot tea and Nick’s copy of Helter Skelter. 

The reds and golds and beautiful wood in the library are so calming and warm, so you’re not at all surprised when Joe comes in wearing plaid pajama pants and a worn tank top and snuggles onto the couch next to you. He smiles sleepily at you, tugs the throw off the back of the sofa and onto his shoulders, and burrows into your lap to rest. 

Neither of you speak, but you’re both thankful for the other’s company. Joe’s quiet breaths are welcome white noise while you sink back into nighttime in the 1960s. You run your hand through his hair over and over again as though you’re petting a cat. Joe falls quickly to sleep, and you’re instantly reminded of your first morning in the Jonas household when the older boy stumbled down the stairs to sleep on Nick’s chest. You wonder what made him stop his nap and come find you. You know Nick is home, so why did Joe choose you? Something inside your stomach flutters and warms, and you lean down to kiss his head.

You…

No, you can't think that way. It’s too soon. It’s not possible. 

You try to shake your feelings off and delve back into your book. Truthfully, it’s a fair bit harder to concentrate than it was a few moments before. 

Thirty minutes later, you hear footsteps approaching. You’re pretty sure you recognize them as Nick’s. You allow yourself a glance up from your book, and when you see Nick, you give a gentle wave.

Nick waves back with his left hand and then produces something from behind his back with his right. 

A smile breaks across your face, ear to ear. Nick grins back and places the massive, stunning bouquet of pink, orange, and yellow flowers on the table in front of you and takes one of your hands in his. You set the book on the arm of the sofa as he presses his lips to the back of it. It’s as old-fashioned as anything he’s ever done, and you feel so happy you could burst. Before you can stop yourself, you’re leaning forward so you can reach his shoulders to pull him in for a kiss. 

“Thank you,” you whisper when you pull away. (You don’t want to wake Joe.) 

Nick fondly runs a hand over your hair and down the side of your face. Then he moves back in and kisses your cheek.

You swear you’ve never felt so excited to have someone touch your skin. You… You can’t fight it anymore. You admit it to yourself; you love him. You love this boy. You love Nick Jonas.

And then Joe makes a soft sound on your lap in his sleep, and you glance down at him. His soft hair has fallen across his forehead, and you can’t help but brush it away. He’s calm and youthful and sweet and loving… you’ve never met anyone like him. He’s a wonderful companion who always speaks his mind. He’s cautious and reckless. He’s strong and submissive. He's sunshine and gray skies. He’s everything, all over the place at once. His skin looks tanner in the lamplight, looks like summer, and you love him, too. You love Joe Jonas. 

You turn back to Nick, your hand moving up to cover your heart.

Nick tilts his head in curiosity, but you just shake your head at him and shut your eyes, that smile on your lips still present. You’re not sure it will ever fall away. You’re in love. You’re in _love._


	19. Again

You don't remember falling asleep in the boys' bed. Not immediately, at least. There's an annoying buzzing sound droning on and on and on, and at first it fits in with your dream, but the more you hear it, the more you start to realize that it's not in your dream at all. It's a phone going off. Honestly, you're too tired to care; you're sure someone else will deal with it. (It's not yours - your phone is always on silent.)

You can feel Nick's ribs rising and falling underneath your cheek, and he lets out a breath and shifts a little to the right to slide his phone off the nightstand.

How did you get into the room? You think for a moment.

You and the boys were watching a movie; you can remember that now. You'd all come upstairs together after a late dinner, and Joe had wanted to see something funny before bed. Netflix had Zootopia, and you jumped at the chance to watch it (again). It was so cute. Nick had protested, but even he had abandoned his pride and lost control laughing at the part with the 'Naturalist Club.' Joe explained to you that he and Nick, like the main character, had stumbled across a place like that by accident. Both boys reported that the scene was freakishly accurate. Still, toward the end of the movie, Joe had fallen asleep, and you must have, too, because you don't remember seeing the end or the lamp being turned off or saying goodnight to anyone. 

The vague memories are swirling around in your mind, but it’s the sound of Nick’s sleepy voice that actually wakes you up. “Hello?”

Oh, yeah. The phone.

He keeps you on his chest, so as he speaks, there’s a gentle rumble under your ear. You blink awake and start to sit up, but he quickly smoothes a hand over your shoulder, lightly leading you back down. “Shh,” he mouths.

But then there’s a loud shriek on the other line, and it’s not a panicked fangirl sound. Nick _does_ sit up then, jolting up and displacing you. His hand squeezes tightly around your arm. If your blood is running cold at the sound, you can’t imagine what his is doing.

“Mom, what’s wrong?” he demands, staring at the wall across the room with wide eyes. “Are you okay? What – what’s wrong?”

There are broken sobbing noises, and Nick is tense for several seconds. Then he sighs, a smile crosses his face, and he sags back into the pillow. He looks at you calmly and motions you back toward him. You go hesitantly.

“Mom,” he murmurs as you lie back down on his chest. “Mom, Mom, listen to me. Mom! He’s fine. I swear. I swear. He’s right-" Nick cuts himself off. "He’s right down the hall," he lies. "Let me go get him for you, okay?” 

There’s more crying on the line, and Nick chuckles silently. He shakes his head. “No, no, I promise. Don’t you think I think I would know if-?” Pause. “Of course not, Mom. Of… Well, no, of course you would have been the first call.” He laughs out loud this time. “Well, yes, yes. Yes, I remember. Mom… _Mom_. He’s fine! Okay? I promise!” 

Joe stirs and sits halfway up, and Nick grins at him. You turn toward Joe, too, watching curiously to see what will happen.

“Yes, I promise!” Nick says into the phone. “I – yes, thank you. Thank you. Okay, hang on. I gotta go wake him up. Hang on, hang on.”

Joe shoots Nick a death glare, but Nick just smiles fondly. It's impossible for Joe to be scary with those droopy, tired eyes. They wait, mentally estimating how long it would take Nick to walk from his room to Joe's.

“What time is it?” Joe mumbles after a moment.  

Nick glances at the clock. “One fifteen.” 

Joe rolls his eyes and sticks his hand out for the phone. “Same as last time?” he mutters. 

“You know it.” 

Joe sighs. “Kay.” 

“Good luck.”

Joe rolls his eyes and takes the phone. “Hi, Mama.” There’s a burst of sound from the other end of the line, and Joe actually pulls Nick’s cell away from his ear and groans. “Yes, I’m fine. No, I know. I’m sorry, my phone was on silent. It was - I.. I love you, too. Yeah, I love you, too.”

Nick has been laughing for a while, but he cracks up when Joe says loudly, “ _No_ , Mom, I’m not dead.”

There are several seconds filled with only Nick's giggles as Joe lets his mom ramble worriedly.

“I’m sorry," Joe finally says. "TMZ sucks. I’ll have Phil call them tomorrow, okay?” Joe blows out a breath. “Well, no, I don’t know. It’s not my… We – I mean, we haven’t – well, _I_ haven’t been out of the house in a while… I don’t know, like, a couple of weeks.” Joe draws the phone back from his ear again. “I know, but I have- I know, I’m just trying to enjoy- Yes, Mama, I will. I will. We will.” Joe drops back onto the bed and shuts his eyes. “I promise… yep… okay, Mama… Tell Dad I love him, too. Yeah. Alright, Mama. Night. Yeah, I will… Okay. Mom - Mom, it’s one in the morning. I have to sleep.”

Nick chuckles again.

“No, I know, it’s not like-” He sighs heavily. “Yes, I know. I’m sorry. I’m sorry. But why do you – I mean, how can you believe this stuff?"

Nick is wide-eyed and wildly shaking his head, but Joe can’t see it from where he’s lying with his face on the mattress, so he continues. 

“It's all so stupid!"

Nick groans softly and puts his face into his hand, and you can’t help but smile. Even _you_ know that Joe’s just walked into a death trap. Another explosion of sound -

"Don’t you think Nicholas would have called you _hours_ before the press got their hands on something insane like that?” Joe asks.

\- and then a different voice is coming through the tinny speaker. 

“Oh, hey, Dad.” 

Nick makes a grabby motion for the phone, but again, Joe misses it. Nick reaches over you to bump his fingers against Joe’s ribs. Joe scoots away but holds his pointer finger up in acknowledgement. He'll hand Nick the phone when he's done.

“Yes, I know. Yeah, I’m fine, I’m fine, Dad… Okay. I'm sorry... Sorry. I know. Okay, I love you, too. Thanks. Um, Nicholas wants to say hi; is that...? Okay… Okay. Goodnight. I love you… Okay, bye.”

Joe doesn’t bother to turn around; he just shoves his hand backwards in Nick’s general direction. Nick leans forward and snags the phone out of it. “Hey, Dad.” A smile finds his face as soon as he hears his father's voice, and while he gets comfortable on his pillow, he starts to gently slide his hand up and down your shoulder. You close your eyes and snuggle closer to his chest. 

Nick talks to his dad for a while. Before he's done, Joe seems to give up on his previous spot, because he gets up on his knees and climbs over you, over Nick, and settles on Nick’s other side. He pushes at Nick’s arm with his forehead like a cat, and Nick lets out an amused huff. He sets the phone on speaker, rests it on his bare chest, and wraps Joe under his other arm. From the other side of Nick's torso, Joe gives you a pleased smile. You lean forward a few inches and kiss him. Nick fondly squeezes your shoulder, and Joe beams when the two of you break apart. 

You yawn, and Joe watches you sleepily as you shut your eyes. His fingers wrap around the hand you have resting on Nick’s middle. You try to stay awake and listen to Nick's conversation with his father, but you're so tired, and Nick's warm, gentle rubbing feels so good on your arm. Joe's thumb slides slowly and rhythmically over the back of your hand, sending you even more quickly back to sleep. 

You don't wake again until after the sun rises. 


	20. Hopeless

You wake the next morning to a crash followed by a low chuckle. Your eyes open, and you realize that again, you’ve failed to set an alarm for yourself… although it doesn’t seem to matter. A glance at the clock tells you that it’s barely past seven AM. 

Nick isn’t in bed anymore, but Joe is still snoozing with an arm draped over your back. You remain tucked under him until you hear the sounds of more objects hitting the floor. As quietly as you can, you wiggle out from under Joe’s warmth and go to the closet for one of Nick’s hoodies. You find one that reads NAVY ST. across the front and pull it around your shoulders. Then it’s off to locate the source of the noise. 

You follow the sounds to a guest room, and you knock even though the door is partially open. 

“Coming!” Nick whispers. He creaks the door open and, with a childlike joy on his face, pokes his head out to grin at you. “Hey.”

You ignore your stomach squeezing because of his smile and ask curiously, “What the hell are you doing in there?” 

Nick opens the door all the way, and one of your hands flies up to your mouth. Shoes lie strewn across the floor by the closet, the bedclothes are pulled back and rumpled as though someone had slept in them, and shirts and jeans are discarded all over the carpet. You’d _just_ cleaned in here! 

“Nick!” you chastise. 

Still smiling, he pulls you inside by the hand. He shuts the door behind the two of you so he can explain without waking up Joe. “The band’s coming over, right?”

You nod. 

“They don’t exactly know about, uh. Me and Joe.” He blinks. “Well, Cole does, but that was an accident. Jack and Jinjoo don’t know, and Joe wants to keep it that way.”

You nod again. 

“We couldn’t legally get married in America, so we went to Europe and did the ceremony completely privately. My parents obviously don’t know either. Or our other brothers.” 

You tilt your head as he continues to speak.

“So to keep up appearances, when people come over, this is Joe’s room. And as I’m sure you’ve noticed, he’s not exactly a neat person.” 

“Yeah, but he’s not _this_ bad!” you exclaim. It looks like a small bomb went off. 

“That’s because we have you.” 

You look at him skeptically. 

“He’s a mess on tour. They band will be expecting something like this.” Then he adds, "I need to tape up some posters."

“But what are they going to think about _me_?!” 

“They’ll love you.”

You try to ignore your heart jumping in your chest. “No, I mean. What are they going to think I do all day if this is what Joe’s bedroom looks like?” 

Nick shrugged. “They probably won’t even think about it.” 

You look at him, and then you look at the floor. “Alright.” You suppress a yawn, and you know that Nick is about to tell you to get back in bed with Joe, so you quickly launch into the next topic. “Well, while I have you here, I had an idea last night.” 

“Okay.” 

“You know how your mom was freaking out about Joe last night?”

Nick rolls his eyes. “How could I forget?” 

“It was because he hadn't been seen in public for a while, right? I need to go to the grocery store today. What if I take him with me?” 

Nick lets out a little laugh. “I mean, I think that’s fine as long as you’re prepared to get trampled by fans and then come home with a cart full of cake mix and sugar cereal.” 

That pulls a smile out of you as well. “Why does that not surprise me?”

“Probably because that’s just Joseph,” Nick replies, fondly shaking his head.

“He never grew up, did he?” 

Nick shakes his head. “Nope. But that’s one of my favorite things about him.” He pulls you in for a kiss and whispers to you, “You look so good in my sweatshirt.”

Color rushes to your cheeks, and he laughs and kisses you again.

“You gonna go get back in bed?” 

“Yeah,” you murmur. “I want some Joe time.” 

Nick looks pleased by your answer. “Alright. I’ll be around. We can all go to the store together when you guys are ready.”

You lean forward and kiss him on the lips one more time before slipping out the door and back the way you came.

You slide Nick’s sweatshirt off and crawl back into bed next to Joe. He wakes halfway up, just enough to nestle you back under his arm. The sheets are still warm, and so is Joe, so it’s easy to relax again. You snuggle closer to him and press a kiss to his cheek.

“Love you,” he mumbles, but before you can say another word, his breathing has evened back out, and he’s sound asleep.

You stare at him, shocked at his words. His gentle breath tickles your nose, and you can’t help but stare at his skin. He’s got little freckles by his nose; you never knew that before. 

You yawn again, sure to be quiet so Joe’s sleep isn’t disturbed further. You close your eyes and whisper back, “I love you, too.”

 

* * *

 

 

An hour later finds Joe waking you up with slow kisses. He runs a hand over your hair and says softly, “You are the most beautiful girl in the world.”

Forty-five minutes after that, the three of you are in Nick’s car with security detail in the vehicle behind you. It’s bizarre, having cars speed around you with people taking flash photos and rushing through the parking lot to chase the boys. You heed Nick’s advice and wait in the car until the paparazzi storm dies down. 

Nick and Joe are supposed to wait for you in the pasta aisle, and when you get there, you find them taking pictures with fans. Both of them are really nice about the whole thing, but as soon as Joe sees you, he’s ducking away from the crowd and toward you, wrapping his arms low around your back for a hug.

The three of you already had the ‘no PDA’ talk, but it seems that Joe is desperate for some physical attention. You’re sure to keep the touches casual, like you’re just a friend, and Nick excuses himself from the pictures for a quick hug, too. While Nick finishes up photos with the fans, Joe stands by you, opting out. He’s still kind, though, giving people small but genuine smiles when they wave at him. Everyone is understanding, and no one seems upset. 

Once the second round of chaos subsides and you pull out your shopping list, a couple people keep following you and the boys around. They probably think that they’re subtle, but they’re definitely not. Nick and Joe ignore them, so you do, too. After a few minutes, their security tells the fans to leave the boys alone anyway. 

Nick had the foresight to grab a shopping cart (which – why is that so cute to you?), so you start browsing the marinara sauces and telling the brothers – _husbands_ – what else they need to locate on the shelves. The three of you make a surprisingly good team, and pretty soon, everything you’ll need to make dinner has found its way into the cart. And then some extras, like a huge box of Cocoa Puffs and two gallons of ice cream. Nick was definitely not wrong. (Although it does make you smile, the way you sincerely don’t notice the cereal until Joe tries to sneak it onto the belt at checkout.)

Nick pays for the groceries and warns you that the paparazzi are going to be back, and that this time there will certainly be more of them. “Word gets around,” he says in a low voice. You swallow and nod, taking what little of the groceries the boys allow you to carry and walking between them out the doors.

And Nick is right once again; a million cameras and flashing lights surround you as you walk to the car. A blonde bodyguard leads the way, keeping the paparazzi mostly at a safe distance. But Nick and Joe on either side of you make you feel safe anyway. 

Once you get to the car, the security guys put the bags in the trunk so Nick and Joe can get into the car without causing too much more of a scene. You sit in the back this time, and, not knowing, Joe slides into the back on the other side. Nick laughs about being the chauffeur, and once you’re safely out of the parking lot and back onto the road, Joe starts kissing you. At first it’s just to make Nick laugh, but then it grows a little heated, and neither of you can seem to tear your lips and hands away from each other. 

Nick watches in the rear view mirror, only half paying attention to the road. After a few moments, one of his hands disappears off of the steering wheel.

As soon as you get to the garage, Nick excuses himself to go upstairs. Joe winks at you knowingly, and you run your fingers down his chest before you start unloading the shopping bags. Nick is flushed, and he keeps a hand placed carefully over his shorts while he walks away.


	21. Head Over Heels

It probably looks like a murder scene when Nick walks back into the kitchen a few hours later. There’s shredded cheese all over the place, cracked pasta on the floor, and what looks like a gallon of marinara sauce splattered across the counters and the floors. And yes, part of the wall as well.

“What the fuck happened in here?” Nick asks in amusement.

You have ricotta cheese smudged over your eyebrow, and Joe is dangling a long, uncooked lasagna noodle over a silver pan. 

“Why does he make cooking so hard?” you ask Nick. “Everything is taking three times as long as it should.”

“Hey,” Joe pouts. “You said I’m a good helper!”

“Yeah, when you were putting the groceries away. Not when you dumped half my sauce on the floor.”

“It’s not _your_ sauce,” he counters. “Nick paid for it.”

“It _is_ her sauce, Joe, she’s cooking,” Nick interrupts with a chuckle. “And why don’t you let her make the food, and you can, like. I don’t know. Set the table or something.”

“But I want to cook, too!” 

“Why are you five years old?” you ask him.

“You love it,” he retorts, poking at your belly button.

You yelp and hop backwards, and he grins, waving the lasagna noodle at you with one hand and brandishing a spoon with the other. “I’m gonna get you,” he taunts. 

“No – no!” you cry, taking several rapid steps backward and then breaking into a jog. “No! This is not how cooking works! There are no sword fights in cooking!” 

“En garde!” he shouts dramatically, waving the silverware, and you can’t help but laugh.

“Nick, help!” you beg. 

“You’re on your own,” Nick says, holding his hands up and backing away. But pretty soon, he’s back in the fun – this time on Joe’s side. They’re both after you, and there’s nothing you can do, so you surrender. They don’t seem to listen, so you grab a white napkin off the counter and start frantically waving it in the air. Which, of course, is a mistake in itself; Joe chooses then to quickly reach up and tickle you under the arm.

“No!” you shriek again, but you dissolve into giggles and collapse against his body. Joe picks you up and sets you on the counter, careful to avoid all the mess he’s made. He stands between your legs, and you yank him forward by the front of his shirt so you can kiss his lips. You wind your fingers through his hair the way you remember that he likes and lock your ankles behind his ass so he can’t leave.

Nick watches the two of you and drifts slowly closer until he’s right beside you, his hand on the small of your back.

Joe's lips feel so right against yours, and then his tongue is in your mouth, and you can't help but wrap your arms around his neck. It's hard not to get jumpy in your tummy with the way he makes you feel. It's harder not to think about him inside of you... 

“I could kiss you all day,” you murmur against Joe’s mouth.

“Then do it,” he replies, not pulling away either. 

“We’re never gonna finish cooking,” you sigh. 

“I don’t care.”

You can’t help but smile. “Me neither.”

 

* * *

 

Miraculously, you and Joe manage to get the lasagnas fully prepped, and you tackle your entire chore list before bedtime. Kevin and the band will be there around lunch the next day, so while you still have time to do more, you’ll feel better going to bed with the knowledge that everything is ready and you can sleep in. 

When you pop your head in in to say goodnight to the boys, you find them lying side by side in their bed. The lights are on, but they clearly don’t have clothes on, so when Nick motions you toward them for kisses, you start to get a little creative in your mind as you so often do. 

Once you’ve kissed them both, Nick inquires, “What’s that face for?” 

You shrug and bite your lip. “I don’t know.” 

“Oh, now I’m curious,” Joe grins. 

“What’s on your mind?” Nick asks again.

“Just… can I try something?”

“Sure,” they answer at the same time. You slip onto the bed between them and roll up your sleeves. Then you pull the covers back.

Nick’s tongue ghosts over his lips. 

You were right; they’re both completely naked. You reach down, one hand on each boy, and run your fingers down their bellies to their-

Joe arches immediately into your touch, eyes falling shut. Nick, on the other hand, is calm, staring straight at you. You try not to grow self-conscious under his gaze. 

Your fingers cup around each of them as you touch them in a way you haven’t been able to yet. All your interactions with Nick and Joe have been so heated; there hasn’t exactly been time for exploratory touches. 

You run your hands down and back up again, down and back up, and while Joe rewards you with a moan, Nick remains still, just watching your face. He’s hard, though, so clearly you’re doing something right.

You continue to slide your hand over their lengths at the same time, and every time Joe makes a sound, Nick’s cock pulses in your hand. Soon, Joe is clawing at the sheets, his knees knocking around on the bed as you touch him, and Nick firmly grips his hand.

“So _good_ ,” Joe moans to you. Then to his husband, “You and me… at the same… time…”

Nick looks back at you. “We’ve never done this before.” His breath is coming out in shorter bursts than you’d expected. You smile at him, and his eyes shut of their own accord. You can only smile wider; you’re making him lose the thing he values the most – control. 

“You’re amazing,” Nick tells you, eyes still closed, “taking care of us like this. Taking care of us together.” 

“So good,” Joe repeats, breathlessly this time.

“Shh,” you whisper.

Tiny gasps and whines fill the room for the next few minutes as you work to make the boys – _your_ boys – feel good. They look so fucking hot all undone under your hands, shaking and shuddering, their fingers laced in each other’s, their eyes closed as they let themselves feel what you’re doing to their bodies.

You start to get wetter in your underwear when it becomes clear that neither Joe nor Nick can keep their moans to themselves any longer. All the groaning and harsh breathing is starting to get to you, and it’s all you can do not to let go of them and reach between your own legs. You want to… you want to… 

But it’s about them right now, and you let your urge drive you to get them both off faster. 

Joe comes first, cum spilling out of his cock onto your fist. Once he's through all the aftershocks, you let go of him. He's out of breath, but he watches as you focus all your attention on his husband. You keep moving over Nick with your left hand, but there’s a drop of Joe’s cum that won’t stop trickling over your right thumb. You bring your fingers up to your face and, without thinking too much about it, slide your thumb about halfway into your mouth, twisting it in a quick circle to get all the white stuff off. 

“Oh my god. Oh my _god_ ,” Nick moans as he watches you, and he cuts himself off with a long, low groan. He comes in short bursts, and when you’re sure he’s all emptied out, you lean down to kiss his lips. His chest quickly rises and falls, and you try not to stare at the ripple of his abs. 

“You’re something else, you know that?” he pants. 

You blush. 

“Oh my god, you just jerked us both off and licked my cum off your hand,” Joe laughs lightly. “You can’t get embarrassed _now._ ” 

Nick is still panting slightly when he asks, “Anything else that’s been on your mind?”

You look away, but Nick always seems to know what you're thinking. 

“What? You want us to take care of you, too?” he asks softly.

You shake your head. You can’t make eye contact, but Nick understands. (You're starting to think he has a sixth sense.)

“Touch yourself,” he gently commands. 

You do.


	22. In the Moment

“HAAAAAYYYYYY!” Jinjoo cheers when Joe opens the front door. She launches forward to hug the older boy, and he laughs and wraps his arms around her.

“Hey!” 

When they break apart, she reaches up to muss his hair. “I missed you, big brother!”

“I missed-”

But before he can finish the sentence, Jinjoo is busy greeting Elvis, and Cole is flying at Joe.

“AAH!” Joe yells, but it’s too late – Cole’s body has completely swallowed his.

Compared to his public getup, Cole is actually dressed fairly normally, but it’s not an outfit you could ever see yourself wearing. He’s got on brown gauchos – not flowy pants; actual gauchos from 2005 – and a camo tank top with white duct tape wrapped in stripes around his torso. He starts pressing a million kisses all over Joe’s face like he’s the grandparent at Thanksgiving dinner and Joe is the youngest kid in the family. 

“Stop – stop – Cole-!“ 

Jinjoo laughs, but Jack comes to Joe’s rescue, pulling Cole back by the tank top and taking his spot for a hug.

Joe is grinning widely, overjoyed to have the band back together.

“You got any food?” Jack inquires. “I’m starved.” 

Joe directs him to your impeccably arranged fruit and cheese tray.

Upstairs, Nick leads you away from the banister where you’ve both been watching the reunion. The pair of you go into his bedroom. 

“That was so cute,” you say as he shuts the door. You sit down on the center of his bed.

“Yeah, they’re really close,” Nick agrees. “It’s always fun to see them together.”

He lies down with his head in your lap, and you smile curiously down at him. “What are you doing?” you ask. This is kind of out of character of him.

He doesn’t speak, just nuzzles into your thigh. 

“What, you need some love too?” you ask. “Jealous of Joe?”

He makes a sound of indifference, but he’s got his lying face on.

“Alright, Elvis,” you tease.

"Hmmph."

You scratch gently at his scalp and lean down to kiss his hair. When he sighs contentedly, you can’t help but roll your eyes.

A few minutes pass, and you and Nick chat a little and listen to the friends downstairs laughing and catching up with each other. Then the doorbell rings, and Nick springs up. “Kevin!" he cries.

From downstairs, there's a loud, enthusiastic yell. "KEVIN!"

You follow Nick to the hall and keep yourself hidden as you watch him jog down the steps. Meanwhile, Joe is dashing through the living room into the entry.  Both boys get to the door at the same time, and Kevin must have heard Joe's shout, because he’s smiling when the door flies open.

“KEVIN!” Joe screams again, flinging himself at his older brother. Nick is right next to him, though, and you’re glad Kevin isn’t carrying anything, because his hands are instantly full. The three crash together in a hug, and you watch fondly from the banister as they stumble backwards and almost tip over. Nick manages to yank them upright at the last second, but they’re all smiles, greeting each other without words. It’s hair ruffles and hand squeezes, a special language of their own. You can’t imagine anything else. 

“Hey,” Kevin finally says, but he’s talking to the band. 

Jinjoo, again, comes forward first to say hi, and Cole and Jack follow. You’re disappearing back to Nick and Joe’s room (oh – _Nick’s_ room) when Joe calls for you. You freeze in your tracks. He calls your name again and asks, “Where are you?” 

“Who’s that?” Jack wonders. 

“Is that the girl from Skype?” Jinjoo asks excitedly. 

“Uh, yeah,” Joe replies distractedly. “I’ll go get her.” 

No no no… you’re not dressed for this! You were just going to stay upstairs and come down to give them food or clean up. Of course, Nick and Joe _would_ have other plans. Those boys… 

You dart into your room and shut the door before Joe sees you, and just to be safe, you duck into the bathroom. 

Joe knocks twice and then walks into your room. “Hey, where are you? I heard you running around.” He chuckles when he sees the closed bathroom door. “Are you hiding from me?” 

“No,” you reply slowly. 

He laughs. “Yes, you are. Come here.” 

You crack the door open and peek out.

“Come here,” he repeats. 

You try to glance behind him. 

“There’s no one here; it’s just me. Promise.”

You come back into your bedroom, and he smiles at the sight of you. Your arms are crossed tightly over your chest, you’re still in your comfy clothes, and you can tell that loose strands of hair are falling out of your ponytail. “I can’t go down there.”

“Why not?” 

You blow out a breath. “Because! I just can’t!”

Joe starts to protest, but you shake your head and sit down on your bed. “I’m shy. I don’t know what I’d say. I have no idea what your lives are like.”

“It’s not about that today. We’re just hanging out. It’s not 'DNCE' and 'Kevin Jonas' – it’s just people. Like me and Nick.” 

A skeptical expression crosses your face. 

“I don’t want you to do anything you’re not comfortable with. But I do think you’ll have fun. Everybody’s really nice, and they'll all really like you. I don’t want you hiding upstairs like – like Cinderella, okay?” 

“We’re going out back!” Nick calls up the stairs. 

“Okay!” Joe yells back. “We’ll be down in a minute!” He looks at you hopefully. “Come on, please? For me? I want you to meet my friends.” 

You point at him. “ _Just_ for you.” 

“Yes!” he whispers, but you’re not done.

“And I need to change first. Will you wait for me?” 

“How long will it take?” 

You swat at him playfully. “Three minutes.” 

“Okay, fine.” He leans down to peck you on the cheek as you stand up. 

You think back to what the band was wearing and choose jean shorts and the same blue v-neck you wore on your first day of work. You run your fingers through your hair, doing your best to clean it up, and then head back out to Joe. “Is this okay?” 

“You look beautiful,” he says earnestly. 

You try not to blush.

Out of habit, he takes your hand as the pair of you walk down the stairs. You don’t really even think about it, but when you go out the sliding glass door and Kevin’s eyes land on you two, you grow nervous. He zeroes in on Joe’s hand laced in yours, and you quickly pull it away.

Joe glances at you curiously and then catches on. He awkwardly clears his throat. 

“Hi!” Jinjoo says.

“Hi,” you reply shyly.

Jinjoo asks, “Are you the girl from Skype?” but before you can answer, there’s a flash of camouflage heading your way. 

“I’m Cole,” Cole says, coming up to you and sticking out his hand.

You tell him your name and shake it. 

“It’s nice to meet you, mama.” 

You let out a small laugh, and Joe rolls his eyes.

“This is Jack and Jinjoo,” Joe says, “and my brother Kevin.” 

“Hi,” you say to all of them. After a moment, you’re not sure what to do, so when Nick tips his aviators down to get a better look at you, you start toward him. He raises his champagne glass at you, and you grin. He looks like a billionaire. You settle in a chair next to him and mostly listen as the others talk and laugh, but soon Jack pushes Cole into the pool, and chaos ensues. 

Joe grabs one side of you and Nick the other, and, despite your protests, with a “One, two, _three!_ ” they throw you into the water.

You scream, but you’re laughing. It’s hard not to when Cole drifts over to you in the shallow end and lets you onto his back for what he calls a 'seahorse ride.' It's like a piggyback ride, but much faster and bouncier.

The sun is bright, and the water isn’t freezing, and everyone is in a good mood. Joe does a cannonball in, Kevin jumps off the diving board, and Jinjoo floats around you and Cole. She asks you questions about how you like your job and whether Joe’s socks smell as bad at home as they do on tour. 

“Hey!” Joe calls from across the pool, playing wounded.

“Just curious,” Jinjoo winks. 

It winds up being Jack that’s your favorite. He’s calm and actually pretty similar to you. The pair of you chill together, talking about nothing with your feet in the pool as the afternoon sun climbs higher in the sky. Elvis lies lazily at your side, panting happily. He’s all tired out from Cole throwing the tennis ball to him a hundred times.

After another hour, you get the courage to ask, “Does anyone want some dinner?”

There’s a resounding chorus of yes, and everyone comes inside to dry off and borrow clean clothes. You find yourself glad that Nick had the foresight to stock Joe’s room with clothes and plaster crooked posters of 90s bands on the walls. There’s even a goofy family photo on the dresser.

Everyone follows Joe to his room, but Nick, who was never fully in the pool to begin with, comes with you into the kitchen. “How can I help?” he asks. 

You’re so pleased with his question that you kiss him. There’s a lot to do. 

You task him with setting the dining room table while you put the last touches on the lasagna and pop the garlic bread into the oven. And you have to steam the vegetables.

There’s so much food that you think they’ll never eat it all, but they do. Jack can eat even more than Joe can, which is amazing in itself. You’re pretty sure he had five helpings of lasagna.

“Can you come cook for tour?” Jinjoo asks at the end of the meal. 

“No,” Nick interjects. “I’m keeping her.”

“But this is  _so good,_ ” Jinjoo says. She gets up from her chair and comes around to yours, draping her arms around your neck. She’s pouting up at Nick as she begs, “Pleeease?”

“Please?” Jack and Cole chorus.

“No!” Nick insists.

Jinjoo leans down to kiss your hair. “I’ll hide you in my suitcase,” she stage whispers. 

“I heard that,” Nick replies, mock serious. 

Jinjoo flips him off and flounces back to her plate.

“Um, if anyone wants dessert,” you say softly, “I made an angel food cake.”

“Did you really?” Joe asks, his eyes alight.

You avert your gaze and nod, trying to keep your smile small. 

“My god, I love you so much,” he gushes.

To the band it sounds like he’s just excited about the food, but Nick winks at you, and you know Joe really meant it. Kevin’s eyes are bouncing between you and his brothers as if he’s watching a tennis match.

You get up and head for the kitchen, hoping that nothing bad will happen with Kevin while you’re gone. He doesn't seem to like you.

You cut pieces for the band and enough for Nick and Kevin, too. Cole, Jinjoo, and Jack have settled on the couch with their cake, and they invite you over, but you tell them you’ll just be a minute. You take your time pretending to glance at your phone as you eavesdrop on the boys. 

“Well, that’s not possible,” Kevin’s insisting. 

“Why not?” Nick asks. 

“Because. Joe, I saw you guys holding hands earlier. That wasn’t 'just friends.'” 

“Yes, it was.” 

“Well then why was Nick kissing her?”

“W-what?” Joe stutters. 

“Yeah. Everyone went upstairs, and Nick was alone with her in the kitchen. He kissed her.”

“ _She_ kissed _me."_

Kevin still isn't convinced. "So which one of you is dating her?" he asks. And then slowly, "Or is she playing you guys?"

You swallow uncomfortably. Fuck. You’re caught.


	23. I Never

Your phone starts buzzing around ten that night.

The band is outside by the pool, and you somehow managed to sneak away to clean up the mess from dinner. All of the band is pretty social, so they keep asking you to hang out. Which is really sweet and secretly exciting, but you’ve got that itch knowing that the longer you let the dishes sit, the more irritating they’re going to be to take care of. 

But your phone is definitely distracting. It feels like every three or four minutes, it vibrates again.

 

_Hey, I know we haven’t talked in forever, but I swear I just saw you on TMZ_

_Why are you on Perez Hilton with the Jonas Brothers?!_

_My mom called she said she saw you on tv with a jonas brother or something I told her shes crazy but anna said the same thing. whats up with that_

_Did you go grocery shopping with Nick and Joe Jonas?????_

 

Oh, crap. You ignore the texts, wanting to answer, but knowing that you’ve signed that security release. And now, with the way things are with the boys, you don't want your friends involved in your work life. That is, if you can even call this job 'work' anymore.

Nick comes inside the glass door, and you start to say hi to him, but he’s got an irritated air about him. You let him be. He stalks up the stairs, and when he gets to his room, you’re almost certain he’s going to slam the door, but he doesn’t. It’s just quiet. No shower running, no music, no masturbating… and that doesn’t fit. He's never like this. Maybe Joe will come talk to him.

When the band comes in half an hour later – Jinjoo’s complaining of her jet lag, and Cole and Jack quickly agree – they say goodnight to each other and drift off to various guest rooms. You call Joe over to the kitchen before he can find Nick.

You nod upstairs the direction of the room he shares with Nick. “What’s going on with him? He okay?” 

Joe smirks a little. “Yeah. He just likes being paid a lot of attention, that’s all.” He shrugs. “I was gonna give him a little extra tonight once I’m sure everybody’s asleep. Wondered if you wanted in.”

You smile shyly and turn away.

“I just thought, you know,” he continues, “it could be fun to have someone help me get him… submissive.” 

Your eyebrows fly up. Nick, submissive? Nick, the one who loves to give directions in the bedroom, who makes decisions and explains exactly how things are going to be? Who values his control more than his own pleasure in the bedroom? That Nick – _submissive?_ That you want to see.

“Is that a yes?” Joe asks, reading your expression. 

You timidly nod. 

Joe grins and kisses your lips enthusiastically. “You’re the best.”

Color floods your cheeks. 

The sliding door opens again. Kevin looks over at you and Joe, his gaze definitely disapproving as Joe jumps away from you and swipes a hand through his hair.

“Just saying goodnight to Dani,” the oldest Jonas says. His tone is almost cold.

You avert your eyes and go back to the dishes, but Joe makes a show of leaning comfortably back against the counter as you clean. “Okay. You sleeping in my room?”

“Uh, yeah. Where are _you_ gonna sleep?” he intones.

“With Nicholas.”

Kevin nods like this is of absolutely no surprise to him. “Okay. Night.”

“Night, Kev.”

Once he’s out of earshot, you murmur, “I don’t think he likes me.”

Joe shakes his head. “He’ll come around. He’s just… confused.” 

“I heard what he said to you two after dinner,” you confess lowly. 

Joe nods. “Nick thought you might have. He wondered why the kitchen was so quiet.” He sighs. “I’m sorry about that. We didn’t know what to say; we hadn’t talked about it beforehand. We honestly didn't think it would come up. It’s not your fault.” He wraps his arms around you, and you lean in, letting him kiss your temple. “We didn’t think we'd get caught. We’re so used to you here and just being… you know. Kevin knows me and Nick like the back of his hand, so even if we were more careful, of course he was gonna pick up on it.” Joe shakes his head. “We should have known. It’s not your fault,” he repeats.

“I know,” you murmur.

Joe tries to convince you to forget about the dishes and go upstairs with him, but you know you can’t leave this til morning. You’ll never be able to sleep if you don’t finish cleaning up now. You tell Joe as much, and you’re only a little surprised when he grabs some plates and starts loading them into the dishwasher. You give him a grateful smile. He shrugs. “Hey, I’m just trying not to keep Prince Nicholas waiting.”

While you remove the detergent from the cabinet under the sink, Joe gets busy plastering bright green sticky notes with **NO!** written on them on every one of his precious food items – the sweet cereal, the ice cream, the leftover angel food cake, his orange soda, the family size box of graham crackers, the chocolate from Valentine's Day, and Nick’s expensive alcohol. 

Once the dishes are done, and Joe's through protecting his food, you flip the light off, and you and Joe walk side by side up to the bedroom.

 

* * *

 

Sneaking in the door makes you feel mischievous. Trying not to get caught doing something you shouldn’t be was always a huge adrenaline rush for you, because, being the oldest, you were always such a stickler for rules. It's got you a little turned on already.

Nick glances up, and when he sees the two of you, he nods but turns his focus back to the TV.

Joe locks the door. He heads toward Nick. “I know today was hard for you,” he murmurs, “having to share me. But you did a really good job not letting it show. And you know what?” He glances at you and then back at Nick. “We decided we’re gonna give you a special treat tonight, okay?” 

That’s got Nick’s attention.

“It’s all about you. There’s just one rule – you don’t get to tell us what to do.” 

At the dark look in Nick’s eyes, your stomach flutters. He’s clearly feeling mixed emotions, and from that expression alone, you know that Nick’s got to have at least a _few_ submissive tendencies locked away. He  _is_ the little brother after all.

“Shh,” Joe whispers. He steps out of his clothes as he walks toward the bed and peels off his shirt as he climbs onto it. “Don’t talk, okay? We're gonna take care of you.”

Nick leans up for a kiss as Joe straddles his waist. There’s a tension in the air that you haven’t felt in the room before, but you like it. You follow Joe to the bed and take a spot at the corner of the pillows so you can shed your tank top. You’ve got a bra underneath, and Joe’s quickly reaching over to you.

“Let me see you,” he says. He unclasps it and you let it fall off your shoulders and onto the floor. His hands trace your skin, making you shiver. But you look back to Nick, and his mouth is parted as his eyes take you in.

You lean down and kiss him, and you can taste a little bit of Joe on his lips. “You’re gorgeous,” you tell him softly, and Nick’s eyes fall shut. It’s as if he’s dying to hear the words. “So beautiful,” you whisper, just to see what he’ll do. His hand stretches out toward you, but Joe quickly moves your wrist out of his husband’s grasp.

“No,” Joe reminds sternly. “No words, no touching. You stay still and do what we tell you, alright?”

There’s been no discussion of a safe word or anything, but from the tender way that you and Joe are both treating Nick, you’re more than sure that a safe word won’t be necessary. This is pure indulgence of Nick’s ego. He’s going to love every fucking second.


	24. Thought

Joe pulls the comforter back and gets Nick’s boxer briefs down to his thighs. Nick fights the urge to kick them off and lets Joe drag them the rest of the way down. You can tell it’s hard, that Nick desperately wants this, has been needy like this all afternoon. But he’s trying to stay still, you’ll give him that.

Joe presses kisses on Nick’s thighs, getting closer and closer to just where Nick wants him to touch. This is the hard part for Nick – not getting to open his mouth and give an order. You do your best to quell the urge for him; you smooth a warm hand over his forehead to calm him. When Joe opens his mouth and takes Nick’s cock inside, you don’t let go.

Nick is quiet. He's breathing a little hard but still quiet. After a moment of watching Joe and of watching Nick’s face while Joe works, you can’t help it; you slide behind Nick and lift his head into your lap. He looks up at you, helpless and silently pleading, but you just give him a little smile. “You can do it,” you tell him. “You’re strong. I know you can.” 

He reaches sideways on the bed and grabs onto your hand. You allow this, twisting a little in his grip to lace your fingers through his. “I’ve got you,” you murmur.

Joe looks up at you through his long lashes, and you can tell he’s pleased. You nod for him to keep going.

You let yourself reach down, exploring Nick’s body. He shivers as you run a finger over his nipples and trace down his abdomen. He’s all muscle, even now, and-

Your thoughts are cut off by a groan leaving Nick’s mouth. God, that’s fucking hot.

Joe pulls his mouth away from Nick, which causes a small whine in the back of Nick’s throat. Joe gives him a disapproving look. “Don’t want anyone to hear us,” he reminds sternly. 

Nick nods. 

Joe runs a hand down his cheek and echoes your earlier statement. “You look so beautiful.” 

Nick closes his eyes again, and as Joe’s mouth finds him again, he arches his back, squeezing your hand.

You can feel your panties getting a little wet, and you’re dying to touch yourself. You almost don’t, but you know it’ll drive Nick crazy, so you allow yourself to do it. You lay him carefully back down on the sheets and slip your hand into your underwear, rubbing lightly at your clit. He’s watching you; even with Joe on his dick, he can't tear his eyes away. You can tell the exact moment he gives into himself and reaches for you, but you pin his hand to the mattress, just out of reach. 

“Good girl,” Joe praises.

Your whole body feels his words.

Pretty soon, your underwear becomes far too restricting. It needs to come off. Nick moans as you yank them down and he sees how shiny your skin is underneath. You and Joe share a quick look. Without words, you agree – it’s going to be amazing to see Nick out of control and turned on as fuck while you ride him. Oh god, just the thought is making you even hotter.

You wordlessly straddle him, taking Joe’s place, and Nick arches his back again as your walls press around him, and he keens as you start moving up and down him. Joe stays right behind you, twisting your nipples with one hand and sliding two of his fingers into Nick’s hole with the other. 

Nick is a mess, falling quickly to pieces underneath the two of you, and when Joe curls his fingers, Nick lets out a strangled cry.

“Shh, baby,” you whisper. You lean down to kiss his cheeks. He turns his head to try and catch your lips, but you grab his chin and move him back. “No.”

He locks his gaze onto yours and swallows. His pupils are dark again like they were before, and you think you could die looking into his eyes. 

He can’t stop moaning and whimpering and whining, and every few seconds finds him wildly biting down on his own bottom lip, but goddamn, he’s trying really hard to keep himself in check. The physical stimulation is just too much. He reaches for you again, and you lean forward on him, tugging his dick further in a new direction. You grab his wrists and pin them to the bed next to his shoulders. He looks like he’s going out of his mind, but he’s never looked so fucking beautiful. 

“Oh, my god,” you whisper. 

Joe must curl his fingers again, because the next thing you know, Nick’s hips are bucking. His mouth is falling open, his eyes are closing, and you can feel him shooting off inside of you.

With all the work you’ve been doing, he hasn’t cum in you for a while, so this is a huge turn-on for you as well. “Oh, god, oh my god,” you groan, and then Joe is behind you, massaging your breasts, and you fall back, head against his shoulder, and let your orgasm rock through your body.

When you and Nick both come down, you slide off his dick and start to press kisses to his cheeks. Joe joins you on the other side, both of you quietly praising him. His skin is pink from the words, but even in his dazed state, he looks happy.

No wonder Joe wanted to do this for him. It’s easily the fucking hottest thing you’ve ever seen.


	25. That

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The entire story has officially been outlined! After this chapter, there should be six more. Maybe just five. I'm expecting it to reach around 40k :)

Kevin and the band leave the next day, and Joe goes with them. There’s some DNCE event in LA, and Joe wants to go hang out with Alena and Dani while they’re out there. 

This marks your first night alone with Nick.

Things are a complete 180 from when Nick had left the house. When Joe leaves, he isn’t mopey at all – he’s thrilled to be with his friends and his big brother. And Nick isn’t so upset because he’s home with you instead of traveling alone. 

That night, Nick is adamant that he doesn’t want you to cook, so the pair of you drive to get Chinese. He’s a gentleman, insisting on getting out of the car with you to go pick it up. He won’t let you walk ten yards away from him by yourself. "Just in case," he says, as if _you're_ the one that's going to get attacked. He's the one with the army of screaming fans.

But he’s still not worried about people coming up to him like Joe is, and this becomes even clearer when two girls approach him almost immediately after you walk through the door. He passes you his credit card, and you go to get the food while he takes pictures with pretty much every customer and staff member at the restaurant. 

You wind up waiting by the door, smiling as you watch him pose for selfies and sign some napkins. He waves when he exits, and he goes back to the car like that was a completely normal ten minutes. And you guess for him it is.

He doesn’t say a word about it, so you don’t either. The drive home is spent discussing what to watch while you eat, and when you get home, you settle on a couple of episodes of Game of Thrones. There’s no real intimacy between you and Nick on the couch; you started out eating, and you’re both engrossed in the show. But this is good. This is… necessary. You remind yourself that he’s not your boyfriend. You work here. 

As the credits roll for the second episode, even though you’re dying for more, you excuse yourself to take a shower. It’s getting really late; it had been dark out when the two of you got dinner, and now two more hours have passed. Nick had spent all day writing and recording in the studio, and with the band gone, you had a million beds to change and make and a ton of dishes and laundry to take care of. 

Nick calls Joe on the phone while you go upstairs, and you can hear a smile in his voice as you walk down your hallway to your door. A few minutes later while you’re under the shower water, you can’t help but yawn. It’s been a long two days, and you’re tired.

Elvis is already waiting for you at the foot of your bed when you come back in. You give him a loving pat and lean down to kiss his head. That sweet dog. You put on a tank top and a pair of black underwear, run a comb through your hair, and climb under the covers. You’ve barely turned the lamp off before you’re fast asleep.

  

* * *

 

You wake a little later to the sound of your name as the door swings open. You’re too asleep to speak, but your eyes open enough that you see Nick coming in.

“Oh, shit, sorry,” he whispers. He closes the door behind himself and walks past the bed. 

Your eyes fall shut again as he drifts out of your line of sight, and you’re almost fully asleep again when you feel his bare chest pressing against your back. He was wearing a t-shirt before, you’re sure of it, but who cares? He’s so warm… 

“Can’t believe you didn't come sleep in my bed,” he murmurs into the back of your neck. You can feel his lips moving on your skin as his arm comes forward to wrap around your chest. 

You let out a soft sigh in lieu of a response, and he kisses your shoulder.

“It’s kinda your bed now, too,” he points out quietly. “Joe’s gone, so I get why you would think things changed, but they didn’t. At least, not for me. There’s no point in us both sleeping alone.” 

“I’m not alone. I have Elvis,” you groggily grumble. You hope your words aren’t slurring. “Now shut up, I wanna sleep.” 

He chuckles warmly. “You’re so cute.”

“Shut up,” you complain again, but he keeps laughing. You can feel his lips against your skin as you drift back to sleep.

  

* * *

 

 

You dream about swimming in the pool in the Jonas’ back yard. The water is all around you, and the sun is shining, but you can’t feel any heat. You just see the light. You float on your back and look up at the clouds.

Something between your legs starts to tingle. You sigh, parting your thighs a little, begging silently for more of whatever it is that’s making you feel this good. A gentle hand slides across your left breast and finds your nipple. Your head tips back in response, but it bumps into something solid. You’re in the pool. Why…? 

Your eyes open, and you’re in your room in Nick and Joe’s mansion. So what-? 

“Good morning,” Nick whispers. He’s still nestled behind you, and he’s got one of his hands between your legs. 

You’d respond, but you’re too busy feeling his fingers on you. So fucking good… 

Your breath catches, and you grab onto his left wrist. You clench it as he moves. He has no reaction, just keeps doing exactly what he’s doing.

You let out a soft moan. “Nick…” 

“Shh.” He tongues at your shoulder, and you moan again.

“Please…”

“What?” The word comes out like he’s asking you something at the dinner table and not like he’s got his hand in your panties. 

“I don’t know,” you groan truthfully. 

He chuckles. 

You tilt your hips back a little, giving him easier access to you. One of his fingers slides into you, and then the other. You grab his wrist tighter. “Oh,” you whisper. 

“What?” he asks again. 

“N-need you…”

Now his voice has a smug edge to it. “Need me what?”

Blush is coloring your cheeks, but your need overpowers your embarrassment for the moment. “In me…” 

He takes his time kissing your neck, your jaw, your temple as his fingers slide in and out of you. “You want me to fuck you?” he asks, almost taunting.

“Yes,” you breathe.

“Yeah?” 

“Yeah.” 

“Say it.” 

"Nick..."

He keeps kissing you as he murmurs, "I'm not gonna do it til you say it."

“Please fuck me.” The words come out as a sigh – everything feels so good right now. You’re still a little bit asleep, and the sensations he’s giving you are incredible.

Just as that thought crosses your mind, his fingers leave you. You can’t help but let out a sad sound.

“One second,” he whispers. He kisses at your neck again. “Just hold on.”

You’re quiet while you wait for him to pull your underwear down. You kick them off, and then you feel him press against your entrance. You tip your hips back again. Within a few seconds, his erection is inside you.

“Nick,” you exhale. He's so big, so firm. “Nick…”

“Shh, I know,” he soothes.

“Not too fast,” you beg. You want this to last. God, you feel _so fucking good_. Of all the sex you’ve had with the boys, this is easily the best, and it's just started. So innocent, so calm. No chaotic rushing. This is just the way Nick woke you up this morning. 

Color floods your cheeks again, but he feels so amazing inside you, slowly sliding forward and back. You reach behind yourself to grip at his hip, and he hums in approval. Every movement, every thrust, every kiss is so slow and calm. Sweet. Good. You feel taken care of.

You could get used to this. 

Five minutes pass, the two of you just lazily fucking. Two more minutes. Two more. Normally, you might just want to come, but right now, you wish this could last forever. You tell him as much.

“You’re incredible,” Nick replies in a whisper.

“You are,” you murmur back. 

He groans gently and moves his hand to the front of you so he can reach your clit. At his touch, you press your back into his chest, and your hips can’t help but move in a circle.

“Do that again,” Nick pants.

You do. And then you keep doing it, gently moving on his cock, making him feel just as good as he’s made you feel. Knowing you’re giving him so much pleasure pushes you closer to the edge, and you suddenly understand all over again why he values his control so much. He’s the one making you and Joe fall apart. Right now everything he's feeling is because of you, and that’s sexy as hell.

When Nick buries his face against your neck and whispers a warning, you’re just a few seconds behind him. Both of you lie against the mattress, breathing for several moments after you come. 

“You want some breakfast?” you finally ask once your heart stops pounding so hard.

Nick laughs. “Sure.” 

“What do you feel like eating?” 

“Let me check my levels first, and then I’ll tell you.”

“Okay.” You yawn as he sits up. Then something dawns on you. “Nick.” 

“Yeah?” 

“Please tell me Elvis isn’t still in here.” 

Nick smiles. “No. I kicked him out last night while you were sleeping.” 

“Why?” you pout.

He shrugs and smirks. “I may have, uh. Had that planned. All that we just did.” 

You blush again. 

“What? It’s hard not to think about with you.”

Your eyes widen, and you bury your face in the nearest pillow. 

He laughs. “See? You’re so cute.”

You swat at him without looking up, and he keeps laughing.

“I’m gonna get my kit,” he says, going back to the original conversation. “It’s in me and Joe’s room. I’ll meet you downstairs?” 

You pull away from the pillow. “Sure.” 

He plants a kiss on your lips and runs a hand down your face. Then you watch him get out of bed and walk to the door, stark naked.

Nick must feel you staring after him, because he looks at your expression. “What?” 

You shrug. “Just… enjoying the view,” you admit. 

He smiles. He knows he looks good, and that makes something in your stomach squeeze in a new way. A good way. “I’ll see you in a minute,” he says. 

“Yeah.” 

He shuts the door behind himself, and you smile up at the ceiling. Best. Morning. Ever.


	26. I'd

“I’m home!” Joe calls the next afternoon.

“Joe!” you exclaim, rushing to the front door.

He drops his suitcase in the entry so his hands are free for you. You throw your arms around his middle, and he wraps you up tightly. He kisses your hair and squeezes you to his chest. 

“Hi,” he smiles, his lips still close to yours. Your noses are almost touching.

“Hi,” you whisper. He smells so good, and he's so handsome... You love his hair unkempt like this. 

Elvis runs up to the older Jonas, skidding across the hardwood floor. Joe laughs good-naturedly. “Hey, big guy,” he grins, letting go of you with one arm to scratch Elvis all over. “Hey, Elvis. Hey, puppy.”

And then there’s Nick, who jogs slowly down the stairs. Joe waits patiently for him. As soon as they get to one another, they kiss. Their bodies mesh together, and their breathing seems to sync. 

Joe breaks the kiss to look at you. “Did you two take care of each other while I was gone?” 

“In more ways than one,” Nick jokes, giving you a wink. 

Your cheeks turn scarlet, and both Jonases laugh.

“How was the trip?” you ask, desperate to turn the conversation away from yourself.

“Great. Ah, I have so many pictures to show you guys.”

“We saw your Snapchats,” Nick tells him. 

“No, I have more.” 

“Can we go in the kitchen?” you ask. “I need to start dinner.”

“Sure.” 

The kitchen, admittedly, is a bit of a mess. You’ve been hanging out with Nick in the studio all morning – he’s been playing some tracks for you and asking for feedback. Then he got distracted and spent forty-five minutes showing you videos on YouTube. After that, the two of you started talking and… somehow, the whole morning and half of the afternoon got away from you. But you figure that’s just what happens when… 

You busy yourself pulling out pans and turning on the sink. “Is chicken Alfredo okay?” you ask.

“ _Yes_ ,” they reply in sync.

You chuckle; that never gets old. “Alright.” 

You set the pan on the burner and wait for the water to boil, and Joe motions you over to show you some videos of Alena. 

“She looks just like Kevin,” Nick says, shaking his head. “ _Just_ like him.”

“I know,” Joe agrees. 

You peer over Joe’s arm at the phone screen and smile as the little girl’s shrieks of laughter fill the kitchen. “Aw.” 

The three of you chat while you cook, and after a few moments, Nick remembers how he spent the morning with you. “Oh!” he exclaims. “Joe, I have to play you some stuff downstairs.”

“Writing again?” Joe asks knowingly.

“Yeah." When Joe doesn't move, Nick urges, "Come on! I need your help with one of them. I can’t get it right.” 

You set the table while they’re gone, and after twenty minutes of cooking and some cleaning, you call them to come to the table. It’s funny; sometimes this job feels exactly like taking care of your younger siblings and the old house. But in other ways, like the flower arrangements Nick brings home and the unlimited access to the sprawling library – and the sex – it’s unlike everything you’ve ever done. 

Joe goes out of his way to kiss you before he sits down at the table, and you can’t help but run a hand down his cheek. He’s so sweet.

You motion to the table. “Eat,” you say warmly.

Joe nods. He hesitates, though, and he reaches down to lift your hands. He swallows carefully and confesses, “I… I love you." 

You can’t help the smile that lights up your face. You nod and gently pull him down a few inches so your mouth is next to his ear. “I love you, too,” you whisper, and you give him a kiss on the cheek.

He grins and kisses you again. And then again. 

“Joe, cool it,” Nick calls, but he’s smiling as he watches Joe so happy. He winks at you as Joe comes to sit at the table.

You clean up a little more as they start into the meal. 

“Oh my god,” Nick says suddenly.

You turn to him, immediately concerned. “What’s wrong?”

“This… this is so fucking good,” he moans through a mouthful. “This is my favorite thing you make.” 

You laugh. “This is the third time you’ve told me that. First the strawberry crepes, then the chocolate cake, and now this.” 

“This is my favorite,” he repeats, pointing with his fork at the pasta on his plate.

"More than the cake?" Joe asks with his eyebrows raised as you answer sincerely, "I'm glad." 

They finish their fettuccine and each ask for a second helping. You tell them to eat their vegetables first, which makes them groan, but they obey. After the peas and carrots have disappeared, you let them have as much pasta as they like.

You settle back in your chair as the three of you eat and talk and laugh. You could get used to this.


	27. Get

Several days later, the guys go for a walk with Elvis, and you decide to stay home. It’s funny; you've lived here more than three weeks now, and this is the first time you’ve ever been alone in the house. Now that you are, there’s something you want to do.

When you and Nick were down in the studio together, a certain something had caught your attention. In the bottom drawer of Nick’s desk sits an unmarked box of DVDs. You asked Nick what they were, and he got a little pink and babbled something about “old home videos.” Well. You knew what that meant. 

Tonight, you try to stay in the library for a while, but curiosity gets the better of you, and soon you’re disappearing into the basement and crouching down by the desk to slide the drawer open. The DVD cases are all unmarked, so you open one. The only thing on the disc is a date scrawled in Sharpie. You’ve come to learn that this is Nick’s handwriting.

You close that box and open another one to find Nick’s handwriting again. This disc says ‘Joe – home alone’ and is followed by another Sharpie date. 

The next one has a date from two weeks ago, and it says Joe’s name… and yours. Your heart drops into your stomach, and you quickly shut the case. You know you’ll only get embarrassed if you watch it, so you don’t. But you take the whole box out of the drawer and carry all the DVDs with you as you head up the basement stairs and then up the next flight as well.

Once you’re safely in your room with the door closed, you sit down on your bed and go through every case. You’re careful not to mess up Nick’s order; knowing him, they’re organized somehow, even if his system isn't apparent to you yet.

 _4/4/2016_ is the date on the next one. You can still hear Joe in your head telling Nick, “She caught me jerking off to that porno we made last spring.” This must be it, then; this is the video you’ve been thinking about in the shower, the one you've been wondering about when you sleep alone in your bed… the one you want to see every time the TV turns on… 

You pop the disc out of the box and take a quiet breath as you slide it into your DVD player. The image flips onto the screen, and you suck in a soft breath.

The boys aren’t in the Dallas house, and then you remember that Nick told you they haven’t been living here for very long. The room they’re in is all white, and their skin looks gorgeously tanned because of it. They’re naked on the bed, Nick on top of Joe, and they’re kissing, kissing, kissing… 

You stumble backward a few steps and sit down on the edge of your bed to watch.

There are no sounds from the video, just the quiet smacks of their lips moving together. Joe’s hands run down Nick’s sides, and the younger Jonas shivers. Nick murmurs something to Joe that you can’t make out, and then they’re both shifting upward. 

“Come on, don’t you wanna fuck your big brother?” Joe teases. 

Nick lets out an involuntary groan, and he looks surprised at himself, but Joe doesn’t. 

He leans forward to nip at Nick’s jaw. “Nicholas… come on. Want you to fuck me. Get inside your big brother. Come on, touch me. Fuck me.”

Nick growls and pushes Joe forward onto his hands and knees.

“There it is,” Joe laughs. 

“Shut up,” Nick mutters, looking a little embarrassed. 

“Make me.”

Mercilessly, Nick shoves into Joe with no warning, and Joe cries out and falls silent. He doesn’t look upset, though; he looks almost blissed out. You figure there was plenty of foreplay before they turned the camera on. 

Nick spreads his own knees a little to get more comfortable, and then he starts moving inside of Joe, pounding their hips together.

“Yeah… yeah…” Joe groans. Their breaths fill the silence.

This is so much better than any porn you’ve ever seen. There’s no crazy whining or moaning, and nothing demeaning or unrealistic. This is how sex is supposed to be.

“Remember the first time we did this,” Joe pants. “Everyone was right there, right outside the door, but I needed you in me, needed you to fuck me…”

“Yeah, and you were so fucking hot. Kissing me and touching me and taking off your clothes…” Nick remembers. 

“You said no,” Joe smiles. “I had to do some convincing. And I always know how to get what I want.” They’re quiet for a moment, just fucking and feeling each other, but then Joe breathes, “You were still a teenager.”

Between heavy breaths, Nick adds, “And you were twenty, and you let me suck your cock whenever I wanted.”

“Fuck,” Joe moans.

You can’t help but slip your hand into your shorts and past the waistband of your panties. Damn these boys.

“You had long hair then, do you remember? And you were working out all the time.” 

“So were you.” 

“And Disney was making you see that girl…”

“I don’t want to talk about her,” Joe says shortly. 

Nick looks smug. “Oh? Why not?” 

Joe moves forward, pulling off of Nick’s erection. “Because I was in love with you,” he says sadly. “And I had to-” 

Before he can say anything else, Nick is grabbing his jaw and connecting their mouths. There’s so much tongue in that kiss, goddamn…

“Say it again,” Nick demands.

“Because I was in love with you,” Joe repeats breathlessly. “I’m in love with you.” 

“Fuck,” Nick whispers back. “So in love with you…” 

Joe presses back into Nick’s grasp, kissing his lips, his cheeks, his temples, and begging for Nick to get back inside of him. 

Nick obliges. One of Joe’s legs is kicked up on Nick’s shoulder, and the other one is at his side. They fuck, quick and desperate, the two of them holding tightly to each other and kissing and moaning- 

Your bedroom door opens, and you freeze. Your entire face goes pale as you see Nick and Joe standing there.

It takes a moment for them to process what they’re looking at – to hear their voices on the screen, to understand why you’re touching yourself the way you are. Joe glances at Nick, who’s standing stock still, and then Joe moves forward. “You found the videos,” he says.

You swallow nervously, almost expecting to be kicked out.

“Come here,” Joe murmurs, half paying attention to the screen and half focusing on you.

You don’t move. You leave your motionless hand where it is, and your eyes wide as he moves toward you. He climbs behind you on the bed and sits so that you’re between his legs. His fingers dip into your underwear next to yours, and they feel so good that you let out a soft sound as he makes contact. 

“Shh,” he murmurs. He nods at the TV. “Here, watch.” He takes it upon himself to get your shorts off, and you lean into his chest as he gently slides two fingers in and out of you.

“Joe-”

“Shh…” 

You can feel his erection as he sits, but he doesn’t seem interested in taking care of it at the moment. He’s preoccupied with you. And he’s taking his time – it’s not the way he usually is. You wonder what changed. 

Joe is moaning on the screen, and you let out a soft sigh in real life. 

“I got you,” Joe assures.

“Don’t stop,” you plead.

“I won’t.”

The video’s still playing when you come, shaking under Joe’s hands and actually shoving his fingers away from your clit. You’re overstimulated. He smiles at his work and comes around to your front so he can kiss you. He tips you back on the bed as your lips move together, and he grinds his erection between your legs. 

“Yes,” you murmur even though you’ve just come. “Yes. Joe…”

There’s a small laugh from the doorway, and you look over. You’d completely forgotten Nick was standing there watching you. He’s leaning against the doorjamb now, a smirk on his face. “Can I get in on this?” he asks.

“Hell yeah,” Joe says as you nod. You reach for him, wanting all of him, all of both of them.

“I want to fuck you while you fuck her,” Nick says to Joe, stripping off his own shirt. 

Your eyes close at the thought. You’re already so wet, and you’ve kind of been secretly dreaming about this. Who are you to deny them what they want? 

Nick pulls his clothes off as you help Joe get undressed. He’s still between your legs, but with the removal of his underwear, his erection is free. You run your fingers over it.

Nick spits into his hand and runs it over his already-hard dick a few times. Then Joe slides into you, and you wrap your arms around his neck. He pants a little into your open mouth. 

“You guys ready?” Nick asks. 

You both nod.

“Okay.”

You don’t feel much other than Joe pushing a little further into you, but then Nick’s fucking into his brother, and the motion is fucking his brother into you. Joe doesn’t have to do anything; Nick is basically fucking both of you at the same time. 

Joe is a moaning mess at the stimulation from your walls and from Nick inside of him. “Oh, god, oh my god, Nick. Oh my god, Nick.” He leans down so that his forehead is resting against yours. “Oh my god,” he murmurs, and then he’s groaning your name.


	28. Hit

The sex barely lasts four minutes. All of you are so turned on, and this new way of fucking is so hot. There's no way any of you could have lasted much longer even if you'd tried. It doesn't matter anyway, though; you’re sure they’ll want to do this again. 

The three of you lie together on your bed, panting quietly. Once you’ve all caught your breath and traded a few last kisses and touches, you sit up and tug your shorts back on. “Alright, up,” you tell them. 

“What? Why?” Joe pouts. 

“I have to change the sheets.”

“Change the sheets?” Nick echoes in surprise. “Now?”

“Yes, now. Have to keep the house spotless for the two of you,” you tease as you push your arms through your sleeves. “Up.”

Nick’s got a funny look on his face, but he and Joe obey. “Are you gonna come sleep with us tonight?” Nick asks. 

You pull your shirt down and smooth your hands over your sides. “Um, maybe,” you reply absently. You grab the corner of the comforter and yank the whole thing off the bed. “I have to take care of some stuff in the living room. And do the laundry, obviously. And I was thinking about doing the kitchen floor tonight, too, so if you guys wanna get any snacks for your room, you should probably go ahead and do that.” 

“I want the strawberry ice cream,” Joe says.

You laugh. “Oh yeah, and where are you gonna keep that? Do you have a mini fridge?”

“No, but you do.” He points to it in the corner.

“True, true.” 

“Joe, come on,” Nick says shortly. He takes Joe by the hand and leads him out of the room.

You watch after them, wondering what’s bothering Nick. He definitely came; you could see the evidence all over Joe. So that’s not the problem. Maybe you shouldn’t have kicked them out so fast, but it’s your job to keep the house under control, and that includes your room.

Joe had seemed fine, anyway. He’s chattering on and on as they walk down the hallway. He'll have Nick back to normal in no time.

Elvis comes happily up the stairs to greet them, and then he trots into your room and lies down right on the middle of the comforter you’re about to wash. 

“Elvis,” you sigh, shaking your head. This damn dog is always getting in your way, but you can’t imagine loving him any less. He just wants to be near you. 

You pull the top sheet off next and toss it over his head as a joke, and he wildly paws at it, trying to escape. By the time he finally peeks back out, you’ve already gotten the fitted sheet free from underneath the mattress. Elvis’ tongue is playfully lolling out, and he seems to be smiling at you as the two of you make eye contact again. Of course, you smile back.

You pile all the sheets and the comforter into the laundry basket that sits in your closet. You and Elvis head down the hall together, and you’re just about to go downstairs when you realize that you’ve left the pillowcases on the pillows. Might as well wash the whole set at one time. 

“Go ahead,” you tell Elvis, who’s looking at you because you set the basket down. The _I’ll be right down_ , is left unspoken. He trots down, his tags jingling loudly, and you go back to your room for the last of the laundry.

On your way back to the basket, you can hear Nick clear his throat. “I just… I don’t want her working here anymore.”

You almost drop the pillowcase. _What?_ He doesn’t want you working here anymore? He’s always praising your cooking and giving you kisses and lending you his books… Why would he bring you flowers and call you when you’ve been gone for two hours just to make sure you’re okay if he didn't want you there? He’s protective and gentle, and his heart is so big. What did you do to make him so upset? You mentally run through the last few days, trying to figure out what went wrong.

Joe is obviously on the same page you are. “What? What the fuck?” 

“I just think-” 

“She’s staying,” he says firmly.

“Joe, can you hear me out please?” 

“No! I’m not letting you take her away!” 

“Joe-”

“You fire _everyone_ , and it’s not fair. You fired Marie and Ron, you fired Pierre, you fired Tony… I’m not letting you fire her, too! I love her, okay? I – I’m in love with her! You know this! We _talked_ about this! You said it was okay, Nick, you _promised_. You can’t fire her!” 

“Joe, can you just-” 

“She’s perfect. Perfect, Nick! She does a perfect job, and she’s beautiful, and she’s _nice!_ There’s not one thing you can possibly find wrong with what she does!” 

“Joe!”

Joe sighs exasperatedly. “What?!”

“Stop yelling, okay? She’s gonna hear you. Come here.” You can hear them walking, and the bathroom door shuts. All conversation is muted.

You stand still outside, tightly clutching the pillowcase, the laundry basket still at your feet. There’s silence for so long that you almost give up and go downstairs. But then the bathroom door is opening, and Joe says hesitantly, “…guess, if you really, really think so. But you’re gonna be the one talking to her. It’s not going to be me.”

“Fine.”

“She seems like she had a lot she wanted to do tonight, though, so just... Let’s let her do it, alright? It makes her happy.” 

Nick sighs. “Alright. We’ll talk to her tomorrow.”

“ _You’ll_ talk to her tomorrow,” Joe corrects.

"Yeah," Nick mutters. The TV clicks on, signaling the end of the discussion.

Your stomach feels so queasy that you have to take a few deep breaths before you can move. You force yourself to head as silently down the stairs as you can, your hand a little shaky on the banister. You drop the laundry basket in the laundry room without putting anything in the washer and head into the garage so you can go up your private staircase. Once you’re back in your room, you pack everything as quickly as you can into the duffle bags you tucked away in your closet. It’s all shoved in haphazardly, but it doesn’t matter. For now, you just need to get out of here.

Twenty minutes later, the room is bare. There aren’t even sheets since on the bed since you’ve taken them all downstairs. All that's left is a mattress and the box of DVDs. You open the one of you and Joe and snap the disc in half, leaving the pieces on the floor. Then you go back down the garage staircase with your bags. It only takes you three trips to get it all into your car.

After you’ve packed comes the hard part. Swallowing bravely, you grab a piece of paper and a pen from your purse. 

You uncap the pen and start to write.


	29. By This

In the morning, there’s no coffee in the pot. Nick is confused – you always start the coffee first thing. He sets about doing it himself, thinking maybe you’re sleeping in a little. You did say you had a lot of work to do last night… 

He’ll wait for you to come down before he has his breakfast. He doesn’t want to pop a frozen waffle in the toaster anymore. It doesn’t seem half as appealing as whatever you might suggest. He checks his sugar and grabs a handful of blueberries out of the fridge in the mean time. 

When his coffee is ready, he pours some into his favorite mug and pads downstairs to the basement. He’s there for almost two hours, writing at first but then just starting to sing. He winds up lying on his back on the floor with his guitar on his chest. He’s plucking the strings to that Daughter song you mentioned that you like when suddenly his stomach growls.

He sits up and glances at the clock. Then he wonders why you haven’t come down to check on him. You usually rub a hand over his hair or kiss his forehead and remind him that he needs to eat. Maybe he’ll play a song or two for you, and then you’ll go upstairs together. You’ll cook, and he’ll sit and talk to you about the flowers or ask you about the new book you’re reading. It’s his collection, after all; he’s familiar with everything on the shelves.

He heads upstairs, a little concerned now. Joe’s at the kitchen table, and the first thing he asks is whether or not Nick has seen you.

“No, I haven’t, actually.” He looks around the kitchen. “It doesn’t look like she’s been here. You think she’s sleeping?” 

Joe shakes his head. “No, I could see that her door was open.” 

Nick frowns. “Well, that’s weird. Where could she be?”

The brothers stand quietly for a moment, thinking. Then suddenly, Nick snaps his fingers.

“The library,” they chorus.

They head there, certain they’ll find you asleep in one of the armchairs with Elvis at your feet, but that’s not the case. Although they do find Elvis there. He lets out a sad whine when he sees the Jonas boys. 

“Hey, Elvis,” Nick croons. “Where’s our girl, huh? Where’d she go?” 

Joe heads back out of the library and toward the garage. “Maybe she left.”

“Where would she go?”

Joe shrugged. “Grocery shopping?”

“It’s too early.”

He opens the door to the garage. “Yeah, dude, her car’s gone.”

Nick wrinkles his forehead. “But where is she?”

Elvis barks at Nick and trots up the stairs. He stops halfway up and whines again at Nick, as if to say, _Follow me!_ So the boys do.

The dog heads down your hallway and pushes his nose into your bedroom. As the door swings open, Joe quietly gasps. Even Nick looks shocked. 

The room is completely empty save for two things – the box of DVDs (one of which lies broken on the floor) and a piece of paper.

Nick rushes to the letter and picks it up. “Dear Nick and Joe,” he reads, and then he looks up at Joe nervously. 

“What does it say?” Joe begged.

“Dear Nick and Joe,” he repeats, “I’m so sorry, but I have to resign. I already contacted the company to let them know. Don’t worry about this week’s payment - I was completely unprofessional, and it’s not fair to ask for any compensation. 

“Please know that I have loved working here more than anywhere else. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to find a job I enjoy as much as I enjoyed this one. The two of you are so wonderful, and I know you’ll find the perfect person to work for you soon. Thank you for everything you’ve done for me. I’ll never forget you.”

Nick swallows and looks up.

“That’s it?” Joe demands. “That’s all she said?” 

Nick nods and passes him your letter.

Joe scans it quickly and tosses it back on the bed. “This doesn’t make any sense. She was fine yesterday!” 

“I know.” He digs his phone out of his pocket and dials your number. It goes straight to voicemail. “Hey,” he says, “we got your letter, and I need you to call me back. Come home, okay? We need to talk about this.” Nick hangs up and looks helplessly at Joe.

“It’ll be okay,” Joe tells him. The two meet in the middle for a tight embrace. “It’ll be okay.”

 

* * *

 

Morning passes, and then afternoon. 

When Nick calls the gate to ask if anyone's seen you, the security guard on duty reports that there’s a note in the book from the guy on last night’s shift. You left late the previous night, after ten, and you were crying on your way out. You insisted that you were fine, but the guy thought it was strange enough to make a note of it.

There’s no word back from you personally, and the sun will be setting soon. 

“Where could she have gone?” Joe demands for the hundredth time. “She doesn’t have an apartment anymore, remember? And her family lives six hours away!”

“If she’s sleeping in her car, I’m gonna kill her,” Nick mutters. He calls your number again. “Hey. Listen to me. We’re starting to get really worried, okay? Please text me back if you don’t want to call. Or text Joe. Nobody's upset; we just need to know you’re somewhere safe.” 

Night falls, and the boys sit in the living room staring at their phones, hoping that they’ll light up or that you’ll come through the front door. 

Neither of these things happen.

They fall asleep on the couch.


	30. Lovebug Again

You wake up in the back of a Walmart parking lot. Your neck aches from the bad angle you slept at, and you’re so hungry that your stomach feels hollow. You sit up and flip your visor mirror open so you can run your hands through your hair. Before you walk into a store – even Walmart – you need to be presentable. You do have standards, after all.

You yawn and grab your wallet. The car beeps behind you, and you turn your phone on as you head in. It buzzes to life and then vibrates what feels like fifty times with notification after notification.

There’s a slew of texts from both Nick and Joe, sixteen missed calls, and five voicemails. Shit.

_Hey, we got your letter, and I need you to call me back. Come home, okay? We need to talk about this._

_Hey, it’s me. Nick and me are trying to figure out where you could have gone, and we don’t know. You’re not in, like, a parking lot or something are you? Please call. We miss you._ _Okay. Bye._

_Hi. I know we left you messages already, but I can’t stop thinking about you. Nobody’s mad at you or anything, so if you thought that and that’s what made you leave, you can come home. I’m sorry you were upset here. If I knew, I would have done something. Let me know what I can do to make you come back._

_Hey, it's me again. This isn’t funny, okay? We need you, and I know you like it here. Please come back. Nick’s getting really scared, and so am I. And Elvis won't stop whining, which is making Nick go a little crazy. I love you. I really hope you’re okay. Call me. I love you again. Bye._

_Hey. Listen to me. We’re starting to get really worried, okay? Please text me back if you don’t want to call. Or text Joe. Nobody’s upset; we just need to know you’re somewhere safe._

You feel guilty as you listen to the sound of their voices. They really do seem anxious, but why would they? They said themselves they wanted you gone. You sigh and pick up two apples from the produce section and wander over to the cash register, where you grab a Hershey bar.

Once you check out, you get back in your car, tapping your fingers on the steering wheel as you consider your options. You might as well go hear what they have to say, right? It’s not like you have anywhere else to go. But you’re embarrassed. Why would they want to talk to you other than to fire you? 

And then there’s the fact that you’re in love with both of them.

You sigh and shift your car into gear.

 

* * *

 

When you walk through the front door, both boys jump from the sofa to their feet. 

“Oh my god, you’re okay,” Joe breathes, rushing toward you and pulling you into a tight hug. 

Nick is right behind him, grabbing onto your shoulders and kissing your hair. “Don’t ever do that again,” he orders. He’s really upset. Much more than you expected.

“Why are you guys being like this?” you ask bitterly.

They each step back, looking confusedly at you. “What do you mean?” Nick inquires. 

“I heard you two talking in your room.” You look pointedly at Nick. “You wanted me gone.” 

“No,” Nick replies, shocked. “No, that’s not what I said.” 

“Yes it is! You said you wanted me to leave! I heard you tell Joe last night. And he was mad, but then you said something to him, and he changed his mind.” 

Nick says your name, but you keep talking. 

“I left so you wouldn’t have to fire me. I was trying to make things easier for all of us! And now I’m back, and you’re acting all nice, and it doesn’t make sense.” You shove a lock of your hair behind your ear and continue. “I get it – we crossed boundaries that no one’s ever supposed to cross, and that makes things uncomfortable. I was fine - I thought _you_ were uncomfortable. And it was wrong, so I left. But I didn’t expect a thousand messages begging to know where I went. That’s why I came back. I wanted to know why you would want me gone one minute and demand to know where I was and whether or not I was okay the next.” 

“That's not what happened," Nick starts. "I don’t want you to work for us-"

“Exactly! So just fire me and let me go.” You shake your head. “This is exactly what I was trying to avoid.”

“I said I didn’t want you to work for us!” Nick repeats loudly. “Not that I wanted you to _leave!_ ”

You throw your arms out to the sides. “And what the hell is _that_ supposed to mean?”

“Okay, calm down,” Joe says, stepping between the two of you. “Take a breath, both of you. Let’s go sit down, yeah?”

“No, I don’t want to go sit down,” you snap. 

“Nobody’s firing you,” Joe promises. “I won’t let that happen.” 

You look at him skeptically. 

“Just listen to my husband, please,” he says softly. “There's an explanation for all of this. If you still want to leave after you hear what we have to say, you’re free to. We won't stop you. But please just hear him out.”

You huff and stalk to the couch. “What,” you say flatly.

“When I said I didn’t want you to work for us, I didn’t mean that I wanted you fired,” Nick says. 

You have to bite your tongue so you don’t lash out at him again. 

“What I _meant_ was that I didn’t want it to be your job to be here anymore. I was hoping that you’d want to… stay. And just…” He shrugs awkwardly. “Be with us.”

You swallow. _Oh._  

“We wouldn’t pay you anymore, but what’s ours would be yours. We’ll take care of everything. You just – you fit so well here, and Joe loves you, and the fucking dog loves you, and I… I love you, too.”

You look down at your lap. “Oh,” you whisper. You look up at them, mortified. “I’m so sorry. I'm _so_ sorry. I didn’t-“ 

“No, I understand why you would think that was what I meant. I do. Joe thought the same thing. But I promise you, it’s not that – not at all. I don’t like thinking of you as an employee. I want you to be… I want you to be mine, I guess,” he admits. “My… my…” 

He trails off, and Joe comes to the rescue. “What do you think?”

“Um,” you murmur. “Can we forget that the last thirty-six hours happened?”

“Yes,” the boys reply together.

You nod. “Then yes.” 

“You’ll stay?” Joe asks hopefully.

You let a tentative smile break across your lips. “Yes.”

Joe leans forward and enthusiastically kisses you. “I love you,” he grins. 

“I love you, too,” you tell him. Shyly, you look up at Nick. “Nick, I…”

He stares unblinkingly at you, his expression unreadable. 

“I love you, too. So much. _So_ much.” 

Nick comes forward and is kissing you then, too. His lips are soft, but his hands are strong. He breaks the kiss and wraps you tightly in his arms. “I thought you weren’t coming back,” he admits sadly into your shoulder. “I thought we lost you.” 

“You’ll never lose me,” you murmur, pulling Joe in with your other arm.

After the hug, you head for the kitchen. They must be starving. “What do you boys want for breakfast?” 

“Cinnamon toast?” Joe suggests.

You smile. “Cinnamon toast it is.”

 

THE END


End file.
